MEDIA ADVISORY: La Jolla High Receives White Seabass from Hubbs Sea World Institute

Reporters and editors: Here's what looks like a great event tomorrow at La
Jolla High. Contact Michael Shane, 619-226-3870, at Sea World Hubbs
Institute if you have any questions.

Jack

Jack Brandais | Communications Department | San Diego Unified School
District | (619) 725-5570 (Desk) | (619) 607-0477 (Cell)

+ + +

HUBBS SEA WORLD NEWS RELEASE

LA JOLLA HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS TO RECEIVE WHITE SEABASS TO GROW IN THEIR
CLASSROOM TO HELP RESTORE DEPLETED FISH STOCKS

Contact: Michael Shane, 619-226-3870
E-mail: mshane@hswri.org

San Diego, Calif. (Sept 26, 2012) ­ Scientists from Hubbs-SeaWorld
Research Institute (HSWRI) will deliver small cultured white seabass to
the students at La Jolla High School on Thursday (9/27/12). The small fish
will be placed in a saltwater aquarium in the classroom and for the next
several months the students will maintain the system and care for the fish
as they prepare them for their eventual release into the ocean. The fish
will be delivered to the science teacher, Dave James, and his classroom
aquarium shortly after 1 pm.

In partnership with HSWRI, the California Department of Fish and Game and
Get Inspired!, SITC brings a hands-on ocean-based learning experience into
the classroom and couples it with field activities related to the release
of fish. The program teaches the students about aquaculture and stock
enhancement by growing the fish for release into the ocean. SITC is the
only program of its kind in the U.S. While there are other projects that
raise fish in the classroom, they are freshwater species. Marine species
are more difficult to culture and provide the linkage to the ocean that is
important and appropriate for Southern California youth. SITC allows
young people to participate in a marine replenishment program that has
been operating since the mid-80s. The program helps them not only gain a
better understanding of where their food comes from but it also addresses
all related aspects associated with sustainability including 1) the health
of the oceans; 2) California agriculture; 3) food production technology;
4) the health benefits of eating seafood; and 5) food security. The
students are learning about the sustainability of a natural resource
through the practices of environmental science, and the
importance of water quality as a factor in animal, plant, and human health.

Dave James, science teacher at La Jolla High School said, ³The ability to
use this system for
laboratory activities, field research, data collection and analysis
necessary for actually raising white sea bass for release into the wild is
unique and extremely valuable. They are learning information that is not
found in their textbooks and they get to interact with and ask questions
of scientists who come into their classroom.²

Some of the activities conducted by the student scientists participating
in the SITC program include the following:

‹the exploration and understanding of the life cycle, growth patterns,
reproductive rates and
viabilities, genetic diversity, and anatomy and physiology of white
seabass;2

‹a dissection of whole fish to observe anatomy and physiology of a fish;

‹witness fish necropsy performed by a fish pathologist

‹measure a sampling of the classroom¹s white seabass to determine average
growth rate; take a
field trip to HSWRI to see the largest marine fish hatchery on the West
Coast and to observe first-hand the various life stages and technology
employed in culturing white sea bass;

‹and the collection, analysis, recording, and comparison of water quality
statistics from the
classroom¹s saltwater aquarium system and from local saltwater sites
(wetland community waters and ocean waters) to study dissolved oxygen, pH,
temperature, salinity, nitrates, ammonia, and alkalinity.

The program is part of the Ocean Resources Enhancement and Hatchery
Program (see below for
more information) and is being funded by SDG&E Environmental Champions
Award.

# # # #

About Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute

HSWRI is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) research organization founded in 1963
³to return to the sea some measure of the benefits derived from it.² With
a 45-year legacy of pioneering marine science that increases our
understanding of animals and their ecosystems, it enjoys international
renown for its work. Its areas of inquiry are ecology, physiology,
bioacoustics and aquaculture. Through science, the application of advanced
technologies and the expansion of knowledge, the Institute provides
effective solutions to conflicts that arise between human
activity and the natural world. Hubbs-SeaWorld scientists apply
sophisticated technologies to seek the solutions that protect and conserve
marine animals while benefiting humans and their reliance on marine
resources. Based in San Diego with facilities in Orlando, Fla. and
Carlsbad, Calif., HSWRI¹s unique contributions are due in part to access
to SeaWorld¹s extensive marine zoological collection, a close association
with local universities and highly respected scientific staff. For more
information, visit www.hswri.org.

About Ocean Resources Enhancement and Hatchery Program (OREHP)
OREHP is the result of an extraordinary partnership between California
state resources agencies, public utility companies, fishing groups and the
scientific community to restore the depleted populations of recreationally
and commercially important marine fish. The nation¹s largest marine fish
enhancement program, it is the only program of its kind on the West Coast.
Launched in 1982 thanks to state legislation and private donations, OREHP
today is funded primarily by recreational fishing license stamps. It is
managed by California Department
of Fish and Game (CDF&G) and operated by HSWRI.

From the 1950s to the 1980s, annual party boat catches of white seabass in
California dropped from over 55,000 to less than 3,500. Partly as a result
of that, in 1983, the OREHP Advisory Panel identified white sea bass
(Atractoscion nobilis) as the most appropriate species to initiate this
long-term research program. Since funding is from fishing north of the
Mexican border and south of Point Arguello, the culture, tag and release,
and assessment is focused in Southern California. OREHP releases thousands
of fish each year and in 2013 is planning
to release its two millionth white seabass. Adult fish have been recovered
up to 13 years after release and more than 350 miles from their release
site.

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