MARINE NIGHT
Glass sponges—the problems and rewards of spending time with these fascinating ancestral animals.

Dr. Henry Reiswig has studied glass sponges for 40 years. Glass sponges or Hexactinellida, one of four classes of the phylum Porifera, consist of about 625 known living species characterized by a skeleton of siliceous spicules with triaxial symmetry. They have been around since Precambrian times and are arguably the first group of animals to have evolved. They have had their periods of geological importance during the Mesozoic where they built impressive, expansive deep-sea reefs and continue to form living reefs along the west coast of North America. Forty years ago he says there was little interest in this group of sponges. Times have indeed changed.

Meet at 7:30 p.m. in Room 159 of the Fraser Building, University of Victoria. Free. Everyone is welcome. Bring a friend!

BIRDERS’ NIGHT
The Bald Eagle: from Victoria in 1953 to Today.
Few species have responded to human attention as have the bald eagles. When David Hancock started watching eagles in the early 1950s in and around Victoria they were rare, distrustful and darn right hard to find. Today some people consider them overabundant in specific locations. That story of change is really due to the change in human attitudes—we have adapted to eagles and they have accepted us. David’s 65 years of following this mutual befriending is the story of his illustrated talk. Bring your favorite eagle story.

Meet at 7:30 p.m. in Room 159 of the Fraser Building, University of Victoria. Free. Everyone is welcome. Bring a friend!