Facilities and Services

AQUATIC FACILITIES for holding a variety of marine and freshwater flora and fauna for long periods at ambient and controlled water temperatures and for live food production to support fish and invertebrate culture.

  • The DR. JOE BROWN AQUATIC RESEARCH BUILDING (JBARB), which provides space for research coupled with semi-commercial hatchery production of marine finfish and shellfish, serving as an incubator unit for companies involved in the marine aquaculture industry and for the training of students and industry personnel. 
  • The COLD-OCEAN DEEP-SEA RESEARCH FACILITY (CDRF), which provides researchers with access to state of the art infrastructure and equipment for the study of freshwater and marine organisms, especially those from the cold waters of the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans. Includes AQUATIC CONTAINMENT LABS for the study of pathogens and invasive species, as well as DEEP-SEA equipment, including two 19-L vessels allowing pressurization of running seawater to 3000 m (IPOCAMPĀ®) and several MULTI-TANK SYSTEMS (9-35 L) ideal for controlled experimentation.

VESSELS, including a Boston Whaler and two zodiacs for collecting organisms.

CERTIFIED SCIENTIFIC DIVERS provide researchers with live animals from coastal waters year-round and support research requiring underwater surveying, sampling or observations.

57 LABORATORIES of varying size, some housing flowing sea-water and others housing instruments for analytical chemistry, biochemistry, physiology, histology, molecular biology (genetics and genomics) and microscopy.

COMMON-USE ROOMS for fish sampling, microscopy/image analysis, high-speed centrifugation, radioisotope analyses, histological preparation and histochemistry and molecular biology.

ANALYTICAL INSTRUMENTATION, including total organic carbon and carbon hydrogen nitrogen analyzers, a nutrient autoanalyzer, high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatographs (GC), a GC/mass spectrometer, a Iatroscan system, high-speed centrifuges, beta- and gamma-scintillation counters, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction machines, a microarray scanner, a genetic analyzer, a fluorescence activated cell sorter, a resonance scanning confocal microscope, a scanning electron microscope with elemental analysis, cell culture incubators and biosafety cabinets and a histology suite, including a tissue processor, an embedding station, a cryostat, an automatic microtome and an automated stainer.

COLD ROOMS for temperature-sensitive experiments.

VEHICLES, including a five-ton vehicle which can be fitted with two 2,500-litre tanks for the transportation of live organisms, four 4x4 trucks available for field research and a shuttle van to provide transportation to and from campus.

SEAL FACILITY, home of the resident seals.

MARINE PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMME, Seasonal tours of the resident seals and a touch tank of fauna (animals) and flora (plants) for visitors.