Moby Doll story kicks off series of Nautical Nights

The Maritime Museum of B.C. monthly speaker series Nautical Nights is back, starting tonight and running until April at the museum.

The series will explore topics related to history, science and the arts. Each month features different speakers and themes.

It will kick off with a talk by Mark Leiren-Young, author of The Killer Whale Who Changed the World.

The story is about a whale named Moby Doll, the first orca displayed in captivity.

Killer whales were once seen as bloodthirsty sea monsters, but that all changed when a young killer whale was captured off Saturna Island in July 1964.

The story tells of the first contact with an alien creature and how humans went from shooting at whales for target practice to loving them to death.

The book won the 2016 Science Writers and Communicators Book Award and was nominated for the RBC Taylor Award and the Hubert Evans Prize.

The series will run on the last Thursday of every month, with the exception of December, until April.

“It’s a great opportunity to engage the community in different maritime topics and to present the diversity of areas to explore,” said associate director Brittany Vis.

Only 40 tickets are available. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 seniors or $30 for a family (two adults and up to four children). Discounts are available for museum members.

The event runs 6:30 to 9 p.m. tonight at the museum, 634 Humboldt St.

Tickets can be reserved directly through the museum, either in-person or by calling 250-385-4222 ext. 103. For more information, go to mmbc.bc.ca. • You can take your young first mates to the museum on Saturday mornings, as the Maritime Museum of B.C. launches its Museum Tots program.

The weekly program, targeted to children ages two to five, will have a new theme each week, with learning through crafts, play, song, and dance.

This week, the children get to go to Pirate School.

This is not a drop-off program. Caregivers are required to stay for the duration of the program. (Perhaps a good time to tour the museum.)

Regular admission is $7 (or $5 with museum membership).

The event runs 11 a.m. to noon Saturdays at the museum at 634 Humboldt St.

For more information, call 250-385-4222, email programs@mmbc.bc.ca., or go to mmbc.bc.ca.