Seymour Marine Discovery Center

The Seymour Marine Discovery Center is a research and education facility within the University of California, Santa Cruz. The lab is used as a base for field research in Monterey Bay and the staff conducts marine field studies all over the world.

The inside of the center is more like the labs and seawater aquaria then what normal museums and aquariums look like. The animals at the center have been chosen as they are different and will entice many questions from visitors. They may look bizarre, move differently and have bright colors; these qualities will entice questions that the Scientists will answer for visitors.

Areas at the center include the seawater table which has many different creatures that visitors can touch and hold. These include sea stars, sea urchins, sea anemones and kelp. In the 'What's in the bay today?' tank there are animals that are not usually in an aquarium such as squid eggs, basket stars and juvenile rockfish.

Visitors to the Seymour Marine Discovery Center can venture outdoors to the natural environment. This area provides habitat for native birds and other animals along with native plants. A native plant nursery is based here, the nursery is designed to collect seeds, propagate plants along with maintenance. Visitors can walk the pathways and view the restored coastal bluff plant.

The aim of the Seymour Marine Discovery Center is to educate visitors on the unusual sea life in the area along with the fauna. They also want to educate visitors on how they can help preserve these creatures and nature.