Get up close and personal with rays, crabs, turtles, lobsters and more when you explore the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Estuarium!
Come discover the secret worlds of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta and the Gulf of Mexico. The Dauphin Island Sea Lab Estuarium exhibits take you beneath Alabama's coastal waves and swamps. The Estuarium has more than 30 aquariums housing over 100 species!
The Dauphin Island Sea Lab is the state of Alabama’s marine science research and education center. The facility has been conducting marine science research and education for over 40 years. Thanks to the Estuarium, you don't have to be a marine scientist or student to experience this fascinating world.
The George F. Crozier Estuarium is Sea Lab's public aquarium. It features animals and plants found in the Mobile area. The Estuarium's Exhibit Hall highlights the four key habitats found along the coast of Alabama.
The Mobile-Tensaw River Delta exhibit displays American alligators, turtles, gars, and other fascinating, local creatures.
The Mobile Bay exhibit features the native species found in the brackish water of Mobile Bay. The exhibit replicates the legs of Middle Bay Lighthouse as habitat for stone crabs, horseshoe crabs, blue crabs, oysters, spadefish, and flounder.
The Barrier Islands exhibit includes live shrimp, blue crabs, hermit crabs and other saltwater species common to coastal Alabama waters.
The Northern Gulf of Mexico exhibit includes animals from the Northern Gulf of Mexico. These include octopus, lobsters, eels, seahorses, red snapper, sharks, and jellyfish.
One of the most popular exhibits at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Estuarium is Rays of the Bay. Rays of the Bay is a 6,400 gallon touch-tank holding a variety of rays and skates. Visitors will have the opportunity to touch Cownose rays, Atlantic stingrays, and other rays indigenous to the area.
You'll also want to check out the Living Marsh Boardwalk, which runs through a salt marsh filled with indigenous plants and animals. Free Boardwalk Talks are held here twice a month with topics ranging from climate change to habitat restoration, salt marshes, oyster reefs, and beyond.
The exciting exhibits and interactive displays of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Estuarium make it an engrossing ocean experience for all. Check it out!
