Choose Between Two Options
- $16 for admission to the Estuarium for two adults and two children (up to a $32 value)
- $10 for admission to the Estuarium for two adults (up to a $20 value)
The Estuarium recreates the marine habitats of the South, giving visitors an up-close view of the fish that live in a drowned river valley, along the Gulf of Mexico, and in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta, which is home to marshes and cypress swamps with alligators and air-breathing fish. On the living marsh boardwalk, Mr. Sand explains the evolution of barrier islands along the grasslands of a real salt marsh north of the Sea Lab parking lot.
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
A fully equipped marine laboratory, Dauphin Island Sea Lab provides marine science programs for students and visitors of all ages in an effort to propagate knowledge of marine science and help protect local ecosystems. Dedicated to education, it runs K–12 teacher education programs on the oceans and marine environments to help get these subjects into the classroom. Its summer college programs and graduate programs offer opportunities for further study in oceanography and coastal ecology. The Sea Lab also works to maintain coastal wetlands and resources, conducts research on the Mobile Bay watershed and shore waters, and maintains the Gulf of Mexico Science Journal.
In addition to its scientific work, the Sea Lab runs a public aquarium, the Estuarium, which depicts local marine habitats including the Gulf of Mexico, a drowned river valley, and a living salt marsh. These exhibits contain a variety of native plants and wildlife such as marsh grasses, recreations of cypress swamps, and an American alligator, and at the Estuarium, children can touch live fish.
