The Dauphin Island Sea Lab is offering salt marsh excursions and other outings throughout the months of July and August. Visitors have the chance to explore the unique ecosystem and become scientists for the day by collecting specimens and samples. The excursions are set for July 18, July 24 and August 8, from 9:45 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The salt marsh is an ecosystem essential to the Gulf Coast, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It is a grassy wetland that is an important component of temperate climates like the one found in coastal Alabama. The estuaries found in Mobile Bay serve as nursery grounds for many creatures of the ocean, and they are where many species raise their young.
Mendel Graber is an aquarium educator with the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. She said the salt marsh excursions are a new experience for most visitors.
“It’s a unique ecosystem that a lot of people are unfamiliar with,” Graber said. “They haven't often gotten into a marsh before. So, it's usually a new experience for folks, and it's a good way to collect and observe a lot of animals.”
The excursions in the salt marsh gives participants the chance to become the marine scientist for the day by collecting samples and specimens.
“We have a lot of success collecting different kinds of animals, fish, crabs, snails, different kinds of crabs, shrimp,” Graber said. “It's a good way to make observations of some animals.”
Graber explained that visiting the marsh allows people to get up-close-and-personal with an ecosystem they might not otherwise get a chance to interact with, especially if they aren’t familiar with the area.
“Understanding the benefits that they provide to the estuary and the ocean, and also humans, helps people understand how to value them and creates the feeling of connection with these ecosystems,” Graber said.
Graber recommends participants wear protective footwear like old tennis shoes or hard-soled, strappy sandals to the salt marsh to ensure they can move around effectively. Shoes that patrons are comfortable getting dirty are their best bet in the marsh, she explained.
“A lot of folks assume that boots, like rain boots or waders, might be a good idea, but the marsh mud actually does a pretty good job of sucking those boots off of your feet, too,” Graber said. “So, we recommend protective strappy sandals that enclose your feet pretty well.”
Clothes and shoes visitors are okay with getting dirty, along with hats, sunglasses, water bottles and sunscreen are also recommended. For more information, or to make a reservation on the excursion, click here.
Along with the salt marsh, the Dauphin Island Sea Lab is also offering excursions related to beach, dune and maritime forests, research guided tours and boat trips in the waters surrounding Dauphin Island. More information on those events can be found here.
