Is it a fish?Yes, seahorses are fish! They are cold-blooded

vertebrates with gills for breathing and fins for swimming. That means seahorses are related to grunion, halibut, and even sharks! Try comparing it to your favorite fish. What are some of their similarities and differences?

Camouflage and HabitatOur local seahorse is well-adapted to blend

into an eelgrass habitat. They can change their color to match the surrounding vegetation. Their upright posture and slow movements also make them difficult to see. Why do you think seahorses need to be camouflaged?

Reproduction A female seahorse produces close to 3,000

eggs and then passes them to the male during a special courtship dance that lasts about three days. Unlike most fishes, young seahorses grow in the brood pouch of the male, and after only two weeks are fully developed and released. What might be the advantages of having “dad” carry the young?

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Wild AboutSeahorses There are 35 species of seahorses which

range in size from almost 14 inches to less than one inch in length. These are fish that belong to the genus Hippocampus, and are some of the most rare and exotic of marine fishes. They are found in temperate and tropical waters and feed mainly on crustaceans.

Vital Statistics

Common Name: Pacific SeahorseScientific Name: Hippocampus ingensSize: Up to 12 inchesRange: Along the coast

from Southern California to Peru

Cabrillo Marine AquariumSan Pedrowww.cabrillomarineaquarium.org

Conservation Status: EndangErEd ThrEaTEnEd VulnErablE ProTEcTEd common

Learn about marine science with wet hands and sandy feet!Cabrillo Marine Aquarium • 3720 Stephen M. White Drive, San Pedro, CA 90731 • 310-548-7562

www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is dedicated to promoting appreciation, knowledge and conservation of the rich marine life of Southern California. Through our many live and interpretive exhibits, seawater laboratories and surrounding seashore habitats, your students have the opportunity to explore the wonder of our neighboring ocean.

Located on the beach in San Pedro, our beautiful coastal park includes grassy picnic areas, tidepools, a salt marsh, sandy beaches and a fishing pier, all joined by fully accessible trails for you and your class to enjoy.

Our programs are LAUSD Board of Education approved and are aligned with California grade-level science standards.

Program Reservations FREE To make reservations for our FREE programs, please visit our

Web site, www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org, click on Education. Print and complete the reservation form. Mail or fax it to Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. To help subsidize the cost of your tour, please bring a bag of recyclable cans as payment.

FEE-BASED To make reservations for our FEE-BASED programs, please call 310-548-7562, Monday – Friday from 8am to 5pm.

LAUSD and some public schools must make reservations through their district office, otherwise use the form found on the Aquarium Web site.

Service-Learning, Community Service and Teacher WorkshopsOpportunities are available to help students fulfill academic service hour requirements.

In addition, we offer Teacher Workshops throughout the year. Please check our website for details, or call 310-548-7562.

AQUATICNURSERY

John M. OlguinAUDITORIUM

Susanne Lawrenz-MillerEXHIBIT HALL

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Outreach

BRIEF PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONSFor complete details, please consult www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org/education

Guided Exhibit Hall and Outdoor ToursExhibit Hall Guided Tours — 90-min. docent-led tours through the main Exhibit Hall, with a stop at the touch tank. Tours start at 10am Tuesday–Friday, October–March.

Summer Exhibit Hall Guided Tours — 50-min Jr. and Sr. High docent-led tours through the main Exhibit Hall, with a stop at the touch tank. Tours start at 10am and 11am Tuesday–Friday in July and August.

Spring Outdoor Classroom — 90-min. docent-led program on the beach at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. Tours start at 10am, Tuesday–Friday. Pre-K Program – April; K-5 Program – May–Mid-June.

Key to the Sea — Learn about watershed stewardship, stormwater pollution prevention and marine conservation! Teachers receive a curriculum guide and activity supplies by participating in a workshop before the field trip. The field trip takes place on the beach where students will be investigating life in the sandy beach, examining what has been washed ashore by the waves and looking for birds with binoculars. Students will also visit the touch tank. Offered from October – March for grades K-5. (www.healthebay.org/key2sea/)

WhalewatchingWhalewatch Trips — Two- to three-hour boat trip offered daily from January through March. Presentation by an experienced naturalist prior to your trip. Call 310-548-7770, Tuesday–Friday, to book this program.

Aquatic NurseryScience Hatchery — 90-min. aquarium educator-led program where students investigate how young animals grow. This program is specialized into three levels for different grades: Sea Gardeners, Young Investigators and Research Assistants. This program is offered at 10am, Tuesday–Friday, year-round (excluding September).

Exploration CenterExploration Center — 90-min. aquarium educator-led program engages students with microscopes, live animals, sea stories and hands-on coastal habitat discovery. Each class includes an outdoor activity, weather permitting. This program is offered at 10am, Tuesday–Friday, October–Mid June.

Sea SearchMarine Biology Workshops provide hands-on laboratory and field experiences that focus on a wide range of marine biology topics. In the laboratory, activities include the use of microscopes and examination of live marine animals and other specimens. Using scientific field observation tools, students will also experience first-hand the animals, plants and algae in their natural habitats at the tidepools, salt marsh or sandy beaches adjacent to the Aquarium. Conservation issues are incorporated in all classes.

Details: Year-round, Tuesday–Friday. Three-hour programs – $250 for up to 35 students, $7.25 for each additional student. Programs are adaptable to grade-specific California state science standards.

Ocean OutreachBringing the Ocean to You! Students will be amazed and engaged through the use of hands-on discovery, specimen investigation and student involvement. We can even bring live marine animals to your school. All of our programs are tailored to grade and age level and designed to spark your students’ curiosity and appreciation for the ocean and the extraordinary life in it!

Details: Year-round, Tuesday–Friday, 9am–4pm. One-hour programs/maximum of four programs per day. Limit 30 students per program. $170 for first program/$70 for each additional program. After-school programs (after 2:30pm) $230 for first program/$90 each additional program. Extra charge for three or more different topics.

Please consult the Program Reservations Section at the topof this page to schedule a program.

School & Group ProgramsThrough many live and interpretive exhibits, seawater laboratories and surrounding seashore habitats,

your students have the opportunity to explore the wonders of the ocean.

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Aquarium Tours Availability Duration Cost Exhibit Hall — 37 tanks containing the largest collection of Southern California marine life in the world Exhibit Hall Tours Oct-Mar 90 min. Free Summer Tours Jul-Aug 50 min. Free Self-Conducted Aquarium Visits Year-round Free Outdoor Programs — Learn about marine life on the beach Spring Outdoor Classroom Apr-Jun 90 min. Free Key to the Sea Oct-Mar 90 min. Free Aquatic Nursery — A unique laboratory-on-exhibit where young sea animals are raised Sea Gardeners Oct-Aug 90 min. Free Young Investigators Oct-Aug 90 min. Free Research Assistants Oct-Aug 90 min. Free Exploration Center — A hands-on learning lab Marine Explorers Oct-Jun 90 min. Free Seashore Naturalists Oct-Jun 90 min. Free Sea Scholars Oct-Jun 90 min. Free Ocean Stewards Oct-Jun 90 min. Free Sea Search — Marine biology workshops What Lives on the Sandy Beach Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Life on the Rocky Shores Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Salt Marsh and Plankton Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Ichthyology Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Habitat Comparison Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Environmental Stewardship Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Animal Behavior–Prey or Prowl Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based EchinoLab Year-round 2 hrs. Fee-based Just for Preschoolers Oct-June 90 min. Fee-based The Ol’ Fishin’ Hole Oct-June 3 hrs. Fee-based Ocean Outreach — Bringing the ocean to you Adventures of C-Weed the Snail Jun-Feb 50 min. Fee-based At Home in the Sea Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Treasures in the Tidepools Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Greatest Fish Story Ever Told Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Thar She Blows! Whale of a Lesson Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Shark! It’s OK to Go in the Water Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based What is Plankton Anyway? Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Squid Dissection Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Fish Dissection Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Fish Printing Year-round 1 hr. Fee-based Whalewatching — Take your class to see migrating gray whales Class presentation on whales Jan-Mar 2-3 hrs. Fee-based followed by whale watching trip

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