Two women walk along Cotter Avenue past a new sign at the entrance to the entrance to UTMSI.The new entrance monument includes a blue marlin sculpture.
Look to the University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute for a great opportunity to explore marine science and life.
Formally founded in 1941, UTMSI is the first permanent marine laboratory built in Texas. UTMSI’s main campus is located at 855 East Cotter Ave. on 72 acres of beachfront land, at the mouth of the Aransas Pass and the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.
Research conducted at UTMSI focuses on red tide, oil spills, fish ecology and physiology, nutrient cycling and more.
The institute operates undergraduate and graduate student programs as well as education programs for the community.
Probably most widely known locally is the Amos Rehabilitation Keep (ARK), which rescues and rehabilitates injured sea turtles and marine birds from San Jose and Mustang islands.
Public programs include selfguided tours of the Wetlands Education Center and Waterwise Wildlife Garden trails. Guided tours are available for the Wetlands Education Center on Tuesdays and Thursday at 9 a.m. and guided tours of the Amos Rehabilitation Keep are available with reservation only on Wednesday and Friday at 10 a.m. Both tours begin at the trailhead, adjacent to the parking lot on 855 East Cotter Ave. The Patton Marine Science Education Center is currently closed and undergoing a major renovation.To register for the ARK tour, visit www.utmsi. utexas.edu/visit/registration
A family tours an area of the Amos Rehabilitation Keep where sea turtles are being rehabilitated. The ARK is open for public tours.
Hurricane Harvey caused more than $45 million in damage to UTMSI, but the campus rebuild effort is 90 percent complete. Construction this spring continues on UTMSI’s research pier, visiting scientist housing, a dormitory, laboratory and visitor facilities.
Research is both global and local. The institute manages two large national research and education programs: the Beaufort Lagoon Ecosystems Long Term Research Program in the Arctic; and the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve here in Texas.
The Mission-Aransas Reserve is the third-largest estuarine reserve in the United States. The Reserve monitors local estuaries and conducts the Institute’s community education programs.
In addition to these national programs,the Institute also has the Port Street campus that includes the Fisheries and Mariculture Laboratory on 10 acres adjacent to the Corpus Christi Ship Channel, near the ferry landing. The Port Street campus has four large laboratories, which support research on the spawning, rearing and physiology of marine fish. It will soon be home to the Center for Coastal Ocean Science, which currently under renovation with funding from the Economic Development Administration.
The institute’s website is www.utmsi.utexas.edu/visit.
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