The president of the Marine Education and Research Society (MERS) will be the guest speaker March 6 at a Comox Valley Paddlers' Club meeting.
Christie McMillan will present to club members keen on acquiring knowledge about our marine world. The presentation will include information on MERS with a focus on marine mammals, in particular, whales.
McMillan has been involved in marine mammal research and conservation since 2004. She holds a degree in marine biology from the University of British Columbia, and has worked as a biologist and environmental educator for various non-profit, government, and ecotourism groups on both the east and west coasts of North America.
She recently spent two years working as a humpback whale research assistant and member of Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network at the Provincetown Centre for Coastal Studies in Cape Cod, Mass.
As well as being president of the Marine Education and Research Society, Christie is the research director for the MERS humpback whale study.
MERS is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting conservation and understanding of marine ecosystems through scientific research, environmental education, and marine wildlife response.
Some of their current work includes: Research on entanglement rates for humpback whales in B.C., Understanding energetic and prey requirements of humpback whales, mitigation of threats to whales through on-water response, Research on the movements of minke whales in B.C. and on minke whale acoustics.
If you are keen on whales, the paddlers' club is pleased to share and you are welcome to attend the meeting as a one-time guest. Many longtime members of the club maintain their membership because of the quality programming alone.
The Comox Valley Paddlers' Club meeting convenes at 7:00 at the Lion's Den, 1729 Comox Ave., behind the Pearl Ellis Art Gallery. Doors open at 6:30. Club business meeting is followed by the presentation.
For more information e-mail comoxpaddlers@gmail.com or visit www.comoxvalleypaddlers.ca and www.youtube.com/user/mersociety/videos.
— Comox Valley Paddlers' Club