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HUBBS-SEA
WORLD RESEARCH INSTITUTE (HSWRI) is a 501(c)(3)
non-profit charity with laboratories in Mission Bay
and Carlsbad, California and Orlando, Florida.
HSWRI began as the Mission Bay Research Foundation in
June 1963, established by the founders of SeaWorld to
"...return to the sea some measure of the benefits
derived from it." The Institute was rededicated
in 1977 to honor world-renowned scientists Carl L. and
Laura C. Hubbs.
At
the Mission Bay headquarters, a scientific staff of
60 occupies the laboratories, offices and conference
rooms, where visiting scientists and research associates
from around the world work with Institute personnel.
The 30,000-square-foot facility is available to students
from local universities who utilize wet labs, classrooms
and have access to a steadily growing marine science
library.
In
October of 1995, the Leon Raymond Hubbard, Jr., Marine
Fish Hatchery was dedicated as one of southern California's
premier aquaculture facilities. Built on land donated
by San Diego Gas & Electric on Agua Hedonia Lagoon
in Carlsbad, California, this 22,000-square-foot hatchery
is an expansion of the successful Ocean Resources Enhancement
and Hatchery Program which is restoring the California
white seabass population through innovative aquaculture
and fishery enhancement techniques developed at HSWRI.
The hatchery is capable of producing over 350,000 juvenile
white seabass annually.
Hubbs-SeaWorld
Research Institute operates the Florida regional offices
at SeaWorld Orlando. These facilities include a small
laboratory, office space, and limited storage capacity
for the Institute's world-class collection of cetacean
(whale and dolphin) skulls. This unique arrangement
with SeaWorld Orlando combines the resources of a marine
zoological park and several academic & research
universities with a non-profit research Institute.
Access
to SeaWorld's extensive marine animal collection and
use of its superb facilities provide the Institute with
unparalleled opportunities for scientific studies. In
turn, data from Institute field work has been instrumental
in the development of SeaWorld's carefully designed
exhibits, and in the effective breeding of many species
of marine mammals and fish.
Institute
research often plays a critical role in providing the
foundation for legislation, environmental management
decisions and conservation programs that protect oceanic
resources. Current projects include:
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Studies
of population dynamics of marine mammals in and
around the California Channel Islands, providing
data for future management decisions. |
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A
program to raise and release white seabass to enhance
this dimishing southern California sport fishery.
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Bioacoustics
studies with whales and dolphins which may point
the way to resolving fisheries/marine mammals conflicts. |
For
more than 40 years, Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute
has been dedicated to providing effective solutions
to conflicts that arise between human activity and the
natural world. Institute scientists are committed to
ensuring that our children and our children’s children
can enjoy the splendor of a whale migrating along our
coast, enjoy sportfishing or watch sea turtles nesting
our beaches.
While
many Institute projects are funded through contracts
and grants, the organization relies on private contributions
to support a variety of independent research projects.
Donors include community-conscious corporate sponsors,
HSWRI Society members, and SeaWorld itself, whose direct
and indirect support endows HSWRI with its special capabilities
for high-quality science. You too can play a role in
assuring the success of its mission. To find out how
you can help, go to www.hswri.org.
Read
more regarding H-SRI's Florida
expansion
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