The Hilliardton Marsh Research and Education Centre is now available to host fun and educational birthday parties! This program offers a unique opportunity for your child and their friends to enjoy an afternoon outdoors at Hilliardton Marsh. Your child will get the opportunity to learn and laugh with their friends as they celebrate your child’s special day.
Booking Availability:
Our ability to host your celebration is dependent on many factors. Our spring (May 1st until mid-June) and fall (September-October) migrations are very busy times and therefore it may be difficult to book during these periods.
Please reach out to inquire about feasibility. We have limited staff and therefore may be unable to host your request this year, but we are expanding our facilities so keep in touch!
What will my Marsh visit look like?
Party goers will be introduced to our researchers to see real science in action, learn about the science behind bird banding, and may even have the opportunity to hold and release a bird after it is banded (children parties aged 12 +). Children will also have the opportunity to explore the marsh ponds where many aquatic creatures in different stages of their development can be captured and examined. Parents and children may opt to take an additional “hike” through our newly developed trails or around the marsh ponds to further investigate the plant and wildlife that make the Hilliardton Marsh their home, and to learn about the Marsh’s history and biodiversity, as well as the importance of wetlands as habitat, and as “filters” in natural water systems.
We have a beautiful pollinator garden with an adjacent outdoor patio. We provide seating and tables but prefer you pack in and pack out any special decorations or celebratory food. The majority of the event should be expected to be held outdoors.
TO BOOK YOUR MARSH VISIT
To inquire about booking or to learn more about what to expect from your visit please complete the form below. A volunteer will contact you to discuss dates, group size, logistics, and any possible programming. Your party team will then receive a package that includes pricing, restrictions, child/parent ratios, safety and behaviour expectations, a “packing list”, and the plan for your visit.
Birthday Party Request
If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.
Rachel Carson
Like winds and sunsets, wild things were taken for granted until progress began to do away with them. Now we face the question whether a still higher ‘standard of living’ is worth its cost in things natural, wild and free. For us of the minority, the opportunity to see geese is more important than television.
Aldo Leopold