University Marine Biological Station, Millport
Encyclopedia
The University Marine Biological Station Millport (UMBSM) is a higher education
institute located on the island of Great Cumbrae
in the Firth of Clyde
, Scotland
. It is run jointly by the universities of Glasgow
and London
(of which it is a listed body).
Located just outside the town it has an interesting curriculum and research programme, with an influx of students throughout the academic year. A Museum and Aquarium (named after founder, David Robertson
) is open to visitors. In May 2003 the station took delivery of the Macduff
-built, 22 metre marine research vessel, RV Aora. UMBSM also functions as a Meteorological Office Weather Station and Admiralty Tide Monitor.
, Sir John Murray
. She formed the Scottish Marine Station for 12 years from 1884. In 1885 she was moved from Granton and drawn up on the shore at Port Loy, Cumbrae. She attracted a stream of distinguished scientists drawn by the richness of the fauna and flora of the Firth of Clyde. The Granton station eventually closed in 1903.
In Millport, amateur naturalist David Robertson was encouraged by meeting Anton Dohrn
and by the wealth of findings from the Challenger expedition
. In 1894 he formed a committee to build a marine station in Millport and took over The Ark. Millport Marine Biological Station was opened in 1897 by Sir John Murray. The Ark was totally destroyed by a great storm on the night of 20 January 1900.
On 21 July 1904 Scotia, the ship of Dr William Speirs Bruce
's Scottish National Antarctic Expedition
, returned to her first Scottish landing site, on the Isle of Cumbrae.
From this beginning the station was gradually built up to its present size. The original building proved too small for the purpose and an architectural copy was built alongside.
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
institute located on the island of Great Cumbrae
Great Cumbrae
Great Cumbrae is the larger of the two islands known as The Cumbraes in the lower Firth of Clyde in western Scotland...
in the Firth of Clyde
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde forms a large area of coastal water, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre peninsula which encloses the outer firth in Argyll and Ayrshire, Scotland. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth of Clyde, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran.At...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is run jointly by the universities of Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
and London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
(of which it is a listed body).
Located just outside the town it has an interesting curriculum and research programme, with an influx of students throughout the academic year. A Museum and Aquarium (named after founder, David Robertson
David Robertson (naturalist)
Dr David Robertson FLS, FGS was a Scottish naturalist who founded the University Marine Biological Station, Millport.Robertson was born in Glasgow. From age 8 he worked as a herd boy in Ayrshire, Scotland but eventually went on to gain a medical degree. His interests turned to the study of Natural...
) is open to visitors. In May 2003 the station took delivery of the Macduff
Macduff, Aberdeenshire
Macduff is a town in the Banff and Buchan area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Macduff is situated on Banff Bay and faces the town of Banff across the estuary of the River Deveron...
-built, 22 metre marine research vessel, RV Aora. UMBSM also functions as a Meteorological Office Weather Station and Admiralty Tide Monitor.
History
The Ark, an 84ft lighter was fitted out as a floating laboratory by the father of modern oceanographyOceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
, Sir John Murray
John Murray (oceanographer)
Sir John Murray KCB FRS FRSE FRSGS was a pioneering Scottish oceanographer, marine biologist and limnologist.-Early life:...
. She formed the Scottish Marine Station for 12 years from 1884. In 1885 she was moved from Granton and drawn up on the shore at Port Loy, Cumbrae. She attracted a stream of distinguished scientists drawn by the richness of the fauna and flora of the Firth of Clyde. The Granton station eventually closed in 1903.
In Millport, amateur naturalist David Robertson was encouraged by meeting Anton Dohrn
Anton Dohrn
Felix Anton Dohrn was a prominent German Darwinist and the founder and first director of the Stazione Zoologica, Naples, Italy.-Family history:...
and by the wealth of findings from the Challenger expedition
Challenger expedition
The Challenger expedition of 1872–76 was a scientific exercise that made many discoveries to lay the foundation of oceanography. The expedition was named after the mother vessel, HMS Challenger....
. In 1894 he formed a committee to build a marine station in Millport and took over The Ark. Millport Marine Biological Station was opened in 1897 by Sir John Murray. The Ark was totally destroyed by a great storm on the night of 20 January 1900.
On 21 July 1904 Scotia, the ship of Dr William Speirs Bruce
William Speirs Bruce
William Speirs Bruce was a London-born Scottish naturalist, polar scientist and oceanographer who organised and led the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition to the South Orkney Islands and the Weddell Sea. Among other achievements, the expedition established the first permanent weather station...
's Scottish National Antarctic Expedition
Scottish National Antarctic Expedition
The Scottish National Antarctic Expedition , 1902–04, was organised and led by William Speirs Bruce, a natural scientist and former medical student from the University of Edinburgh. Although overshadowed in prestige terms by Robert Falcon Scott's concurrent Discovery Expedition, the SNAE completed...
, returned to her first Scottish landing site, on the Isle of Cumbrae.
From this beginning the station was gradually built up to its present size. The original building proved too small for the purpose and an architectural copy was built alongside.