The VicPS AGM will be held at the start of our monthly meeting on March 18, to be followed by a speaker. Look to your email for further information regarding the speaker.
Perry Poon of the Vancouver Palaeontological Society has asked that consideration be given for presenting the Rene Savenye Award at the July 10-13, 2020, 13th BC Paleontological Symposium at UBC in Vancouver.
Here are the guidelines, approved by the Board in 2003, outlining the purpose, criteria and process for the Award. To nominate a person for the award, follow the procedure on the guidelines and send the nomination to Graham Beard no later than March 31, 2020. This will allow the committee time to review the nominations and, if appropriate, select an award winner. If an award winner is chosen, the award (usually a big secret) will be announced at the symposium.
Graham Beard of the Vancouver Island Paleontological Museum Society (VIPMS) serves as Chair of the award committee. Graham will establish who is on the award committee. In the past, the award committee has included some previous award winners, and Jim Haggart has been involved as an advisor due to his past involvement in the award. The people on the award committee should be perceived as neutral and not as advocates for a particular nominee.
There have been only five previous winners of the Savenye Award – see the BCPA website for details.
The Vancouver Island Palaeontological Society are holding the VIPS and North Island College thin section workshop on Saturday, January 11th. This link gives you an idea of the process and tools involved.
Randal Mindell, research scientist and paleo-botanist will lead the thin section workshop. Lucas Evans, the NIC lab technician, will provide the facilities and be our host. The NIC lab will accommodate up to 15 people, so prior registration is advised.
The workshop will start at 10:00 am and go until 3:30 pm with a lunch break. Bring your best fossil wood specimen.
Here is the day’s schedule:
- Randal will do a Power Point presentation covering the general procedure of the thin section process.
- You will use the specimen of fossil wood you brought and cut it with the rock saw to create the clean surface for the thin section.
- Once the fossil is cut and the new surface exposed, Randal will assist in the preparation and the grinding or polishing process.
- Preparation of the thin section with the acetate peel will be completed and ready for viewing under the microscope.
- Viewing of the actual fossil wood cells of the should be amazing.
- Determining the genus of the fossil wood by review and comparison to the record may be possible.
- Where: – North Island College- 2300 Ryan Road Courtenay, Raven building, near the front entrance, upstairs in the NIC Lab .
- When: – 10:00-3:30? Saturday January 11th, 2020 ( Bring a lunch or go to the NIC cafeteria)
- Workshop Cost: – $20 (all materials supplied)
- Contact Betty Franklin for registration using cheque or e-transfer at beetlejean@gmail.com
Key things to know about the 23rd Fossil Fair:
- takes place March 23-24, 2019
- at the Nature House in the Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary, 3873 Swan Lake Road in Victoria
- from 10 am to 3 pm each day
- admission by donation.
For all you school age palaeontologists out there, the Fossil Fair will occur during your Spring Break.
The Fossil Fair will display a rich and diverse variety of ancient fossil animals and plants from the Cambrian (550 million years ago) to the end of the last Ice Age (10,000 years ago). Fossils will be displayed from Vancouver Island, other parts of British Columbia and other areas. The fossils include dinosaur bones, ammonites, trilobites, corals, mollusks, insects, giant palm leaves and microscopic fossils.
Of interest will be a display of 42 million year old fossil snails from the Crescent Terraine which are partially crystalized. Information will also be available on the results of voting for a provincial fossil recently released by the provincial government.
The display cases and story boards from the VicPS Educational Kit which is used by the society in presentations to school groups, youth camps and other organizations will also be displayed. This will be of interest to school teachers and other educators.
The Fossil Fair is an educational experience for all age groups. The public is invited to bring in fossils for identification. Specific activities for children include a fossil scavenger hunt with prizes, fossil colouring, rubbings stampings, and looking through microscopes.
The Victoria Palaeontology Society cooperates with professional palaeontologists undertaking research on fossils collected by Society members. Information will be provided on some of the scientific contributions made by members, including the discovery and naming of new species. All scientifically important fossils are donated to the Royal British Columbia Museum.
The Society is a member of the British Columbia Paleontological Alliance, an umbrella organization representing the interests of a number of paleontological organizations in the province.
Admission is by donation.
Key things to know about the 23rd Fossil Fair:
- takes place March 23-24, 2019
- at the Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary, 3873 Swan Lake Road, Victoria
- from 10 am to 3 pm each day
- admission by donation.
For all you school age palaeontologists out there, the Fossil Fair will occur during your Spring Break.
The 12th British Columbia Paleontological Symposium will be held at the Florence Filberg Centre, in Courtenay, BC, on August 18th and 19th , 2018. The British Columbia Paleontological Alliance meets every two years to hold symposia, to bring together many branches of paleontology: vertebrate, invertebrate, paleobotany, micropaleontology, paleoecology and paleoclimatology.
Registration, welcome reception, posters and art show will be held Aug 17th at the Courtenay and District Museum and Paleontological Centre, 207- 4th Street.
Please read the announcement here.
The Victoria Palaeontology Society will hold its 22nd Fossil Fair on March 24-25, 2018, 10 am to 3 pm in the Nature House at the Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary, 3873 Swan Lake Road in Victoria. Admission is by donation.
| PLACE: | Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary 3873 Swan Lake Road, Victoria |
| DATE: | Saturday & Sunday, March 24 & 25, 2018 |
| TIME: | 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. |
| COST: | Admission by Donation |
| CONTACT: | Tom Cockburn (Victoria Palaeontology Society) 250-652- 4267 Renee Cenerini (Swan Lake Christmas Hill Nature Sanctuary) 250-479- 0211 |
The Fossil Fair will display a rich and diverse variety of ancient fossil animals and plants from the Cambrian (550 million years ago) to the end of the last Ice Age (10,000 years ago). Fossils will be displayed from Vancouver Island, other parts of British Columbia and other areas. The fossils include dinosaur bones, ammonites, trilobites, corals, mollusks, insects, giant palm leaves and microscopic fossils.
The display cases and story boards from the VicPS Educational Kit which is used by the society in presentations to school groups, youth camps and other organizations will also be displayed. This will be of interest to school teachers and other educators.
The Fossil Fair is an educational experience for all age groups. The public is invited to bring in fossils for identification. Specific activities for children include a fossil scavenger hunt with prizes, fossil colouring, rubbings stampings, and looking through microscopes.
The Victoria Palaeontology Society cooperates with professional palaeontologists undertaking research on fossils collected by Society members. Information will be provided on some of the scientific contributions made by members, including the discovery and naming of new species. All scientifically important fossils are donated to the Royal British Columbia Museum.
VicPS member Marji Johns, Paleontology Collections Manager and Researcher at the RBCM, is presenting Jan 9 to the Victoria Natural History Society at 7:30 pm, Room 159, Fraser Building, University of Victoria.
From the VNHS calendar:
Natural History Night: From Cliff to Cabinet
January 9, 2018 @ 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Fraser Building, University of Victoria
From Cliff to Cabinet:Securing 18,000—52 Million Year Old Fossil Matrices for Research, Exhibition,and Learning
The McAbee Fossil Beds Heritage Site near Cache Creek, B.C. contains exceptional fossilsvital for scientific research, education and viewing. The significance of thesite was initially recognized by researchers, and later, Dave Langevin and JohnLeahy managed the site under mineral tenure, making important fossilcollections before its Heritage Site designation in July 2012. This fall(2017), the Leahy family donated the fossils collected by John to the RoyalB.C. Museum. Today, Marji Johns introduces you to the fossil site, some of the fossils and theirsignificance, and initial plans for this new collection at the Museum. Marjireceived her M.Sc. from the University of Victoria and has worked for 39 yearsin paleontology and geoscience. She is currently Paleontology CollectionsManager and Researcher at the Royal BC Museum. Kjerstin Mackie, TextileConservator, Royal BC Museum, and Elisabeth Deom, Senior Stewardship Officer,Heritage Branch, B.C. Ministry of Forests, Lands & Natural ResourceOperations contributed to this presentation. We meet at 7:30 in Room 159,Fraser Building, University of Victoria. Everyone is welcome. Note: UVic parking is $3.
Not a VicPS event, but this may be of interest to anyone keen on palaeontology.
At the Royal Theatre, May 2, 2018, 7 pm, with tickets starting at $42.50. Ticket sales started on September 11. From the event page here:
Nizar Ibrahim, Paleontologist
Spinosaurus: Lost Giant of the Cretaceous
Meet Spinosaurus, the largest predatory dinosaur yet discovered—larger than T.rex—and hear the incredible story of how this prehistoric giant was almost lost to science, before being brought back to light with the help of a remarkable young paleontologist.
Discovered more than half a century ago in Morocco by the great German paleontologist Ernst Stromer, Spinosaurus’ fossil remains were lost in the Allied bombing of Germany during World War II. With the help of recent fossil discoveries in the desert, and Stromer’s own data and drawings, contemporary scientists including German/Moroccan paleontologist and National Geographic Emerging Explorer Nizar Ibrahim have reconstructed a full skeletal model of Spinosaurus, which has been featured on the National Geographic Channel and presented in the National Geographic Museum.
With amazing video recreating the lost world of the Cretaceous-era Sahara, Ibrahim will tell the story of Spinosaurus’ discovery, loss, and rediscovery, and explain what—other than its size—makes this ancient monster unique.