Indian River Lagoon
FAU Harbor Branch is located in Fort Pierce, Florida, on the banks of the Indian River Lagoon. The IRL is the most biologically diverse estuary in the United States. Harbor Branch researchers have been studying the lagoon for over 40 years, and now have advanced technology called Land/Ocean Biogeochemical Observatories (LOBOs) to monitor conditions at various sensitive locations. As the network expands, more real-time data from the IRL will be made available for everyone at the web site
Postcards from Home - Ocean Discovery Center at FAU's Harbor Branch, Part A
Host Erick Gill visits the Ocean Discovery Center at FAU's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution in Fort Pierce.
Dennis HANISAK 3/7/18 Seagrass: The 'Lungs' of the Indian River Lagoon
About the Speaker
Dr. M. Dennis Hanisak is a Research Professor at Harbor Branch and Director of the Indian River Lagoon Observatory and Harbor Branch Education programs. His research is focused on marine plants, particularly macroalgae (seaweeds) and seagrasses. He has conducted research on marine plants in the Indian River Lagoon and in other parts of Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. Dr. Hanisak is the author of over 80 scientific publications, a frequently invited participant at national and international meetings and workshops, a past President of the International Phycological Society, and a past President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Phycological Society of America.
As Director of Harbor Branch's Education Program, Dr. Hanisak is dedicated to fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation by students and the public of the importance of the oceans and their impact on our lives. Among other activities, he has led and developed programs for university students, the Harbor Branch Summer Intern program, innovative programs with St. Lucie County School District (including the Marine & Oceanographic Academy on the HBOI campus), and the Ocean Science Lecture Series for the public. It is his belief that working scientists need to convey what they do, and why it is important, to students, resource managers, and the public, as well as to colleagues
About the Lecture
Seagrasses are flowering plants that form dense underwater beds in coastal waters. Seagrass has been called the lungs of the sea because of its ability to generate oxygen through photosynthesis. Healthy seagrass habitat is required for the ecological functioning and the economic viability of the Indian River Lagoon (IRL). The lagoon’s health is directly related to the abundance and productivity of its seagrasses. Thus, a high priority for management of the IRL is attaining and maintaining a functioning seagrass-based ecosystem.
In this decade, the IRL has experienced catastrophic loss of seagrass due to two unprecedented phytoplankton “super blooms” and “brown tides”. Shading by the blooms resulted in widespread loss of seagrass, with up to 100% loss at many sites in the northern IRL; there was been only limited recovery. This lecture will provide an overview of the ecological and economic importance of seagrass, historical trends and current status of seagrass in the IRL, and current research at Harbor Branch that aims to determine if seagrass restoration in the lagoon might be feasible.
HBOI PB Oculina Cruise 2015
Published on Jul 4, 2015
During June 24-26, 2015, scientists from Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute at Florida Atlantic University and members of Project Baseline explored the deep coral reefs (300ft) off of Stuart, FL. The team used the Baseline Explorer and its submersible and technical diving capabilities to locate, document, and sample this unique habitat.
Days Inn Fort Pierce Midtown - Fort Pierce, FL
Welcome to Days Inn Fort Pierce Midtown. This charming hotel is close to the historic downtown area, Harbour Branch Oceanographic Institute, and an exciting array of recreational activities, including golfing, swimming and fishing.
We work hard to make your stay easy. Our delicious on-site restaurant is open all day for your enjoyment, and we offer room service, a business center and event space, a guest laundry, a beautiful outdoor pool, plenty of parking, and a shuttle to the airport and nearby attractions.
After a day of soaking up the sun, you’ll love returning to our clean, cool rooms to relax and unwind. You can plan your next adventure with complimentary Wi-Fi, watch the latest episode of your favorite cable TV show, or enjoy a restful nights sleep on our comfortable beds and new bedding. All accommodations include a microwave and a refrigerator, and fully accessible rooms are available at Days Inn.
Pod of Pilot whales comes ashore at Avalon Beach State Park
So far five of the approximately 22 whales have survived and are being treated at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Ft. Pierce
Bill BAXLEY 5/27/15 Power from the Gulf Stream for South Florida
The Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center at Florida Atlantic University is tasked with supporting the development of renewable energy from ocean currents, namely the portion of the Gulf Stream that passes offshore of south Florida. The project intends to establish an offshore test facility composed of a surface Mooring and Telemetry Buoy, moored to the seafloor and sufficient to support underwater turbine devices and their support vessels while stationary in the 5-knot currents. SNMREC will also provide instrumentation, deployment equipment, and experienced personnel (including Harbor Branch staff) to support both industry and governmental prototype devices.
Royal Inn Beach Hutchinson Island - Fort Pierce Hotels, Florida
Royal Inn Beach Hutchinson Island 3 Stars Fort Pierce Hotels, Florida Within US Travel Directory One of our top picks in Fort Pierce. This Hutchinson Island boutique hotel is 3 minutes’ walk from sandy beaches and the Inlet Jetty Boardwalk. The Navy Seals Museum and Smithsonian and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute are within 8 km of the hotel.All rooms feature free Wi-Fi, a balcony, and microwave. This Hutchinson Island Royal Inn Beach hotel provides a small refrigerator and flat-screen TV as well. Rooms have tiki style furniture, granite bathrooms, and pillow-top bedding.The hotel serves a daily free breakfast, which includes hot waffles. Royal Inn Beach Hutchinson Island guests will also enjoy a sun terrace with lounge chairs, separate picnic area, and barbecue facilities. Bicycles, kayaks, and fishing gear are available for a fee.Guest will be 9.7 km from Indian River State College and 25.7 km from Digital Domain Park, which hosts the New York Mets Spring Training. The West Palm Beach Airport is 72.4 km away.
Hotel Location :
Royal Inn Beach Hutchinson Island, 222 Hernando Street FL 34949, USA
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FAU Harbor Branch: Lake O discharges contributing to algae
Researchers with FAU's Harbor Branch Institute say the water releases from Lake Okeechobee play a big role in local waterways. Whitney Burbank has the new developments from Fort Pierce. Subscribe to WPBF on YouTube now for more:
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Pompano Harvest 04/08/14
FAU Harbor Branch donates almost 6,000 aquacultured pompano to the Harvest Food and Outreach Center of the Treasure Coast and greater Orlando area. Harvest will have the fish processed and make this delicious, high-value nutrition available to the needy in their service areas. The project to grow the pompano is entitled 'Commercialization of Florida Pompano Production in Inland Recirculating Systems', and was funded by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Aquaculture Review Council, and the Harbor Branch 'Aquaculture' Specialty License Plate. Floridians can purchase their license plate online, at fau.edu/hboi. Click on the license plates!
Julie ALBERT 11/19/14 North Atlantic Right Whales
Right whales are the most endangered of the great whales, with the North Atlantic population teetering around 500 individuals. Entanglements in commercial fishing gear and collisions with vessels are the number one killers of right whales. With only about 20 born to the population each year off the coasts of Georgia and Florida, it is imperative to reduce human impacts if this species is to survive.
In this presentation you will learn why the North Atlantic right whale population is so small and how important shoreline users are in protecting them in their only known calving ground. Join us to learn about right whale history, biology, reproduction, feeding habits, migration, and how you can help ensure that mothers and their newborn calves return safely to their northeast U.S. feeding and breeding ground in the summer.
Florida Chamber of Commerce: Indian River Lagoon
An education project sponsored by the Florida Chamber, with content provided by Dr. Brian Lapointe, FAU-Harbor Branch.
Jon Bell 12/09/15 The Celestial Sea
Jon Bell is the director of the Hallstrom Planetarium on the campus of Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Florida. In this lecture he illustrates how a large part of the heavens is called the celestial sea. Capricornus the Sea Goat, Aquarius the water carrier, Pisces the fish, Cetus - a sea monster that's actually a great whale, and much more. Join us for this engaging an informative presentation.
Amy Wright 2/3/16 Cures for Malaria, Tuberculosis, Alzheimer's?
Full title: Cures for Malaria, Tuberculosis, Alzheimer's? An Update on Natural Products Discovery at HBOI
About the Speaker
Dr. Amy Wright is formally trained as an organic chemist and has spent the past 35 years exploring the chemistry of marine organisms with the goal of identifying natural products with the potential to change how we treat dread diseases. Much of her work has focused on organisms collected in deep water habitats using tools such as the Johnson-Sea-Link submersibles. She received her B.S. from California State University at Dominguez Hills and her MSc and Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of California at Riverside.
About the Lecture
Wherever there is biological diversity there is chemical diversity and this diversity leads to opportunities for finding new medicines. Many plants, marine animals and microbes produce small organic molecules, “natural products”, that provide advantages to the organisms that make them which range from attracting mates to repelling or even poisoning predators.
These same natural products often show activity in human health applications and over 46% of the small molecule medicines used today have their origin in natural products. The talk will discuss the HBOI natural products library and how we are using it to look for new compounds with the potential to treat cancer, tuberculosis, multi-drug resistant bacterial infections, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Jon MOORE 2/18/15 The Manatee Project at Harbor Branch and Student Involvement
The Manatee Project at Harbor Branch began in 2009 to systematically identify the individual manatees coming into the HBOI ship channel and small boats basin. Student and volunteer observers have photographed individuals and collected behavioral data, and more than 330 different manatees have been photographed and given preliminary identifications. Photos of distinct individuals have been shared with the Manatee Individual Photo-identification System (MIPS) run by the U.S. Geological Survey in Gainesville, Florida. This lecture summarizes the findings on manatee individuals and their ecology in and around Harbor Branch and discusses future research projects.
Dr. Dennis HANISAK Indian River Lagoon Observatory
FAU Harbor Branch scientist Dr. Dennis Hanisak presents on environmental observing efforts and techniques in the Indian River Lagoon to better understand the function of the ecosystem and the significant critical issues it faces today.
Dennis HANISAK 4/5/17 The Indian River Lagoon: “You Can Observe a Lot by Just Watching”
About the Lecture
The goal of the Indian River Lagoon Observatory (IRLO) is to investigate ecological relationships in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) and how they are impacted by natural and human-induced stressors. An important IRLO component is a network of advanced observing stations: the Indian River Lagoon Observatory Network of Environmental Sensors (IRLON). IRLON now has 10 sites in the IRL and St. Lucie Estuary (SLE) to provide real-time, high-accuracy, and high-resolution water quality and weather data through an interactive website (
This lecture will provide an update on IRLON, with a focus on observations of major events in the IRL and SLE in 2016, including the impacts of 9 months of freshwater releases from Lake Okeechobee and the resulting cyanobacteria blooms, as well as natural events, such as Hurricane Matthew. IRLON allows all of us – scientists, managers, educators, students, and the public – to directly observe long-term ecosystem changes and those driven by events, such as freshwater discharges, droughts, storms, and algal blooms, as they happen, from wherever we are.
About the Speaker
Dr. M. Dennis Hanisak is a Research Professor at Harbor Branch and Director of its Marine Ecosystem Health and Education programs. His research is focused on the biology and ecology of marine plants, particularly macroalgae (seaweeds) and seagrasses. He has conducted research in the Indian River Lagoon and in other parts of Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. Dr. Hanisak is the author of over 75 scientific publications, a frequently invited participant at national and international meetings and workshops, a past President of the International Phycological Society, and a past President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Phycological Society of America.
As Director of Harbor Branch's Education Program, Dr. Hanisak is dedicated to fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation by students and the public of the importance of the oceans and their impact on our lives. Among other activities, he has led and developed programs for university students, the Harbor Branch Summer Intern program, innovative programs with St. Lucie County School District (including the Marine & Oceanographic Academy on the Harbor Branch campus), the Junior Scientist Program in partnership with the Indian River Land Trust, and the Ocean Science Lecture Series for the public. It is his belief that working scientists need to convey what they do, and why it is important, to students, resource managers, and the public, as well as to colleagues
Marc VIRGILIO 10/22/14 Managing Spoil Islands of the IRL
The Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves consist of seven separate aquatic preserves from Volusia to Palm Beach Counties. Through restoration projects, volunteer events, and public outreach, the IRLAP staff conducts several projects, including spoil island enhancement, shoreline restoration, spoil island bird and diamondback terrapin monitoring. These projects are conducted with heavy involvement of the community at all phases of implementation and are essential to the office’s success.
The Spoil Island Project is a coalition of government entities and local groups to enhance spoil islands ecologically and for recreational uses. The lecture will cover the many facets of the Spoil Island Project as well as an overview of other IRLAP programs and how to help.
Aaron ADAMS 1/24/18 Linking Fish, Habitats, and Conservation
About the Lecture
The scales at which recreational fisheries are managed do not match the ecology of the species that comprise the fisheries. Moreover, most fisheries management plans do not include information about habitat requirements for target species. These disconnects poses challenges to effective fisheries conservation. This presentation will use examples from recent research to highlight these disconnects. For example, management of the recreational fishery for snook (Centropomus undecimalis) in Florida, focus on stock assessments, discard mortality estimates, and catch and release education. Missing are management actions that consider the habitat mosaic required for snook ontogenetic connectivity. Additional focal species include bonefish (Albula vulpes), tarpon (Megalops atlanticus), and permit (Trachinotus falcatus). Incorporating the ecological-scale factors into conservation strategies for coastal recreational fisheries is essential to ensuring sustainable fisheries, especially given the increasingly critical degradation and loss of coastal habitats.
About the Speaker
Dr. Aaron Adams is a Senior Scientist at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and the Director of Science and Conservation for Bonefish & Tarpon Trust. He received a bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College in Maryland, a Master’s degree from the College of William and Mary, and a Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and holds a Coast Guard Captain’s License. He has lived, conducted research, and fished on both coasts of the US and throughout the Caribbean. His scientific focus is on conducting applied research with conservation implications, with a particular interest in fish habitat ecology. In addition, he is also an avid angler, and has authored three books, contributed to five books, and written numerous magazine articles that translate fish science into layman’s terms.
Harbor Branch researcher to participate in NOAA science cruise April 10 to May 1
Stephanie Farrington is a Biological Scientist in Marine Ecosystem Health at FAU Harbor Branch. She will be serving as co-science lead on a research cruise aboard the NOAA ship Okeanos Explorer. You can follow the cruise activity from April 10 to May 1 at oceanexplorer.noaa.gov