San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Interactive museum, aquarium focuses on importance of marine conservation
Kids are always thrilled by the two enormous whale skeletons on display at the Seymour Marine Discovery Center at the Joseph M. Long Marine Laboratory in southwest Santa Cruz. Of course they are — Ms. Blue, the 87-foot blue whale, is one of the largest examples in the world, discovered in 1979 after she washed ashore near Pescadero. And the gray whale skeleton resting on an ocean bluff comes from an animal that stranded in south San Francisco Bay in 1990.
Yet tour guide and Santa Cruz Bike Tours owner Martin Abaurrea makes the viewing experience even more interesting, for people of all ages.
The center is a favorite stop on his bicycle adventures throughout the coastal region, and he clearly enjoys explaining how gray whales eat — they swim on their sides just above the sea floor, sucking mud and sand into one side of their mouths to vacuum up shrimp-like crustaceans called amphipods. Then they use their baleen — a filter-feeding system inside the mouth — to strain amphipods from the muddy water before expelling the suspended sediment out the other side of their mouths. Swirl and spit.
Abaurrea also gets almost giddy pointing out two bone appendages on the blue whale’s lower belly. We will never, ever guess what they are, he says with nearly a cackle and looks a bit crestfallen when one visitor suggests “pelvis.” But that’s not exactly right, he notes, since these bones are specifically hips, remnants from some 54 million years ago when whale ancestors were four-legged mammals capable of conquering land.
The whales are the official — and best known — mascots of this fascinating marine center overlooking Monterey Bay on permanent display outdoors. Yet there’s so much more to explore at the 20,000-square-foot visitor center and marine facility.
Back in 1974, Donald and Marion Younger donated the 40 acres of pristine coastal bluff and freshwater lagoon to the UC Santa Cruz’s Institute of Marine Sciences. The goal was to establish a marine laboratory and resource center for wetland preservation, but the institute’s first director, Bill Doyle, wanted to welcome the public, too, furthering worldwide education on the importance of marine conservation.
After nearly decade of planning, the visitor center debuted on March 11, 2000, and it continues to be the only working research laboratory in California to be open daily to the public.
These days, you can explore exhibit halls, and take a behindthe-scenes tour of the labs, where you’ll learn that the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary is known as the “Serengeti of the Sea” or “Blue Serengeti” for its incredible diversity of marine residents. Whales, sharks, seals, squid, sea otters, dolphins and seabirds all call this magical area their home.
In the visitor center, a small aquarium brims with colorful fish, and there are tidal touch tanks, inviting you to hold a sea star and a hermit crab, or pet a swell shark, a tiny, inches-long creature that’s an expert at hiding amid rocks with its greyish-brown color and a splotchy pattern.
Read the descriptive signs dotted around outside, too. They explain nifty facts such as how fresh, naturally oxygenated sea water is pumped directly from the bay into the facility’s pools and lab tanks to keep critters happy. Once the water flows through the facility, it’s released pure and clean back to the ocean.
Another popular activity is the Younger Lagoon Reserve tour, a 90-minute hiking adventure taking you into the sanctuary habitat adjacent to the Seymour facility. Part of the UC Natural Reserve System, the lagoon boasts diverse coastal habitats for birds of prey, migrating sea birds, bobcats and other wildlife. Your docent will explain what scientists are doing to track local mammals and restore native habitat.
Tip: Whatever activity you choose, be sure to pack in snacks or even lunch for post-tour relaxing at picnic tables near the bluffs towering above the water next to the gray whale. The views are spectacular.