Day One of Outdoor Adventures Camp is a wrap!
Our Holmes County 4-H crew had an awesome day exploring at the Gulf Specimen Marine Lab. We learned how we can help protect Florida’s ecosystems. Our 4-H’ers had the opportunity to see and touch a variety of marine life from the Gulf of Mexico. We also learned about how other marine rehab facilities and academic institutions utilize the Lab for learning as well! To learn more about how the Marine Lab operates, check out the Lab’s website at Home – Gulf Specimen Marine Lab and read the “About Us” section. If you have never been, we encourage you to take a visit to the Gulf Specimen Marine Lab in Panacea, Florida.
About Us – Gulf Specimen Marine Lab
Gulf Specimen Marine Lab – “What We Do Here”
Established in 1963, Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)3 organization that provides marine life to schools and research laboratories. We also study endangered species and conduct research in mariculture, farming the edge of the sea. Today we are an integral part of numerous research programs all over the United States, Canada and Europe.
In 1995, due to continued strong growth in interest and attendance, GSML began a program to more strongly emphasize educational programs for regional schools, aquarium display and public visitation. (Read more about our history here.)
Our sea urchins and sponges have been sent to outer space and have been studied using some of the most sophisticated technology our society has to offer. Yet as modern day “hunter gatherers” we employ many of the simple harvesting techniques that Indians, who subsisted on this bountiful Panhandle coast, used thousands of years ago.
Whether it’s beach combing, digging up creatures on tidal flats, diving or net fishing, we take only what is needed, strive to keep from damaging the fragile marine habitats, and actively oppose pollution and careless coastal development so that the sea will continue to bring forth. Please help us protect the earth which grows such strange and beautiful creatures. Support the preservation and protection of natural area and avoid over consumptive habits.
0
