West Liberty-Salem Marine Biology students in Mrs. Smith’s class took a field trip to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium on Tuesday. They visited Manatee Coast Shores and Aquarium where they took a behind the scenes tour of the manatee rehabilitation facility. The Columbus Zoo offers one of only three manatee rehabilitation facilities in the U.S. where the sea cows are fully recovered before they are release back to their native waters in Florida.
The Manatee Coast is also home to a mangrove exhibit transferred to the Zoo from Florida. A Zoo Interpreter taught our students about why this is important for the Aquarium and how mangroves impact our eco system. Behind the scenes tours and Interpreters offer students to see the Zoo from a whole new vantage point. Many people don’t know that there are far more animals housed at the zoo than just what are on display! We appreciate the opportunity this provided our students and hope they enjoyed the hands on field experience.