The Virginia Institute of Marine Science has announced its upcoming events for the month of February.
“Romance Beneath the Waves,” the next After Hours lecture, will be held Thursday, Feb. 13, from 7-8 p.m. in the McHugh Auditorium at Watermen’s Hall on the VIMS campus.
Join VIMS for a special Valentine’s Day-themed lecture with William & Mary’s Batten School and VIMS professor Dr. Jeff Shields as he presents the variety of ways that marine animals reproduce.
Shields will discuss how stationary organisms like barnacles mate, how crabs find each other in the vast, dark and deep sea, and whether oysters are really an aphrodisiac. VIMS has rated this talk PG-13.
After Hours lectures are designed for an adult audience. The lecture will be held in-person as well as online through a livestreamed webinar. Registration is required for both in-person and webinar attendees.
Preserved specimens from the Batten School and VIMS’s fish and invertebrate collections will also be on display in the visitors’ center for guests to interact with before and after the lecture.
Art & Science
The W&M Art & Science Exchange and Waves of Wonder: A Marine Science & Art Incubator will hold “An Afternoon of Art & Science” next Friday from 3:30-5 p.m. in the McHugh Auditorium.
Dr. Sarah Huber and Dr. Eric Hilton of the Batten School and VIMS will present a lecture on “The Art of Ichthyology.” “Good for the Bees,” artwork by Zara Fina Stasi, will be featured.
This program is free of charge and open to faculty, staff, students and the public.
Discovery Lab
The next Discovery Lab will be held on Feb. 19 from 6-8 p.m. and will discuss “Tales with Turtles.” The program will be held in the Catlett-Burruss Research and Education Lab on the VIMS campus.
W&M professor Dr. Randy Chambers will present his work on Diamondback Terrapins and their conservation. Learn all about turtles that live in salt and brackish water and follow turtle life cycles from shore to sea with games and demonstrations.
Designed with elementary-aged youth and their parents in mind, each lab focuses on a different topic related to the Chesapeake Bay and the local environment and includes exhibits, demonstrations and hands-on activities, as well as a short presentation by an expert on the topic.
Reservations to this free event are required due to limited space.
One-act play
“Rollover,” a one-act play, will be performed in the McHugh Auditorium on the VIMS campus on Feb. 22 at 2 p.m. and again at 7. The play was written by Laura Jean Moore, a professor of coastal geomorphology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
This production immerses audiences in a fictional barrier island community grappling with the impact of a devastating hurricane. This six-character, multi-generational story brings to life the emotional, scientific and social challenges facing barrier island communities as they face the reality of relocation, adaptation and loss.
Following the performance, stay for a talkback session featuring expert scientists specializing in coastal erosion and barrier island dynamics. Panelists will discuss the real-world science behind the play’s events, how coastal communities can adapt to a changing climate, and what is at stake for future generations.
This event is free and open to the public with registration recommended.
To sign up and learn more about any of the aforementioned events, visit vims.edu.