Celebrate World Ocean Day June 8 At The SLC Aquarium

Everyone is invited to join in on the global celebration of World Ocean Day with the Smithsonian on Saturday June 8 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.! Come to the Smithsonian Marine Ecosystems Exhibit, located in the St. Lucie County Aquarium, located at 420 Seaway Drive on South Hutchinson Island in Fort Pierce, and enjoy learning stations, crafts, face painting, seining demonstrations in the Indian River Lagoon, and other activities all centered around the Earth’s indispensable marine resources. The first 100 children twelve years old and under will receive a free gift bag filled with educational materials.

Admission to the Aquarium is $4 for adults and $3.00 for seniors (55+) and children. Please call 772-465-3271 for more information about this event.

Seining demonstrations will be offered every hour on the hour from 11:00am-2:00pm. The demonstrations will give families the opportunity to get their feet wet (literally!) in the Indian River Lagoon by collecting animals - including crabs, pipefish, sea slugs and more - in the same manner as Smithsonian researchers and aquarists! Participants wishing to enter the water must wear protective footwear, such as water shoes or old sneakers, to participate in seining demonstrations and children under 16 years old must be accompanied by an adult.

The Smithsonian Marine Station and the St. Lucie County Aquarium are proud to join leading educational institutions, conservation organizations, and individuals in dozens of countries around the world to celebrate our shared ocean. World Oceans Day – held on June 8 of each year – is an opportunity to celebrate our world ocean and our personal connection to the sea.

The Ocean Project, an international network of over 1,000 aquariums, zoos, museums, and conservation organizations including the Smithsonian Marine Station and Ecosystems Exhibit, is working closely with the World Ocean Network to coordinate activities worldwide under the theme “Together we have the power to protect the ocean” with a special focus on getting the public to celebrate the ocean and strive to protect it. For more information on the Ocean Project, visit www.theoceanproject.org.

The Smithsonian Marine Ecosystems Exhibit is located in the St. Lucie County Aquarium on South Hutchinson Island in Fort Pierce. The Smithsonian Marine Station teamed with St. Lucie County and other community partners to create this unique educational facility. The Ecosystems Exhibit is an outreach effort of the Smithsonian Marine Station, a branch of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History. A fixture in the Fort Pierce community for over 40 years, the Marine Station is dedicated to understanding the character and diversity of the marine and estuarine habitats of Florida.