28000 Marguerite Pkwy  Mission Viejo, CA  92692  USA

We are located in the old, Science Math Greenhouse. From the Marguerite Pkwy College entrance, we are at the top of Theatre Circle Drive and just a few steps away from the bus stop, (see the picture, right, of the roof-top). We are between the first and second floor of the S-W corner of the building. Access either side by the stairway or ramp.   If you have a group that would like to visit us and learn more about career opportunities, please contact us to arrange a time:    Julie Anderson;  Janderson@saddleback.edu, (949) 582-4657  or  John Richards:  Jrichards15@saddleback.edu, (949) 582-4579

Before going downstairs, begin at the 2nd Floor display window, located just down the outside hallway next to the Biology Service Room, SM 234.   Sorry, but these aquariums are located behind a wire-window - so the photo pick up the reflection caused by the wire.  * Tropical Fish Reef Display (200 gallons) - This is a community fish reef with a very productive and mature pair of Maroon Clowns, Premnas biaculeatus, who paired in October 1998. They lay eggs every 6 weeks. You'll also see a variety of other tropical marine fish.  * Captive raised percula clownfish display (25 gallons) - These are the second pair of captive raised percula clowns, Amphiprion percula, that we have, the other pair are downstairs in the Aquarium Lab Facility, in another 25 gallon tank.

• From here, go down the outside steps (or use the ramp around the side) and follow this guide.
• Enter through the chain linked gate and go left through the door.
• Follow the arrows on the floor, look for the numbers and please, watch your step.
• Additional information is/should be posted at each location.

1. Shark Exhibit (420 gallons) – “Vanilla” is a full grown, male Brown Banded Bamboo Shark, Chiloscyllium punctatum. He was given to us when he was less than 6” long, as a newly hatched young from the Birch Aquarium, 9/1/03. The beautiful six-foot diameter acrylic aquarium was a fabulous donation from Frank Nichols, owner of Coral and Fish Collection of Santa Ana. The other fish are “buddies” for Vanilla; Naso tang and Hawaiian 3-Spot Damselfish (adopted.) Vanilla loves attention and pretty much begs for it, and yes, we can assure you, he is getting more then enough food!

2. Live Food Culture: This is where various micro-cultures are grown for enhancement feeding. The cultures include:  a unicellular green algae, Nanochloropsis (pictrue is too dark and can't see them), marine rotifers, Brachionus plicatilis, (underneath the algae culture behind the dark curtain) and brine shrimp nauplii, Artemia sp.

3. Spicey, our terrestrial green iguana, Iguana iguana. Okay, we know he’s not aquatic, but he is our Biology Pet Mascot and he loves the warm, tropical Greenhouse and all the students that work in and around him.  Spicey is approximately 8-9 years old and was adopted by us with a missing tail. As you can see, he has grown this tail back, though it looks rather double-jointed, and is very content with his surroundings. (The picture is decieving, he has a very large cage.)

4. Mangrove Refugium - Research Project (40 gallons) – this is an on-going research investigation and demonstration of how plants might be utilized with advanced technology to clean up the nutrients in the water created by the animals in the Shark Exhibit. Water moves very slowly through water lines that feed from the shark exhibit. The red mangroves, Rhizophora mangle, are growing in 3 inch depth of laterite soil in a large 45 gallon mixing tub (from Home Depot), which is plumbed into the sump system of the LLS of the Shark Exhibit.

5. Life Support for the Shark Exhibit – you can peek over the and around the Mangroves and see the large sump tank, where the water flows from the tank, through filter socks, bio-media. Water loops from the sump to the protein skimmer for additional "scrubbing". Protein skimmers are vital in maintaining optimal water quality for healthy animals. The mangrove swamp receives a slow water loop from the sump, and act as biological filter to furtherlower nitrogen and phosphate compounds.

6. Black Tub with 4 small holding tanks (450 gallons). These 4 small tanks are holding tanks for Peppermint Shrimp, Lysmata wurdemani, calcareous green cactus algae, Halimeda sp., an assortment of snails & hermit crabs (so-called 'janitors' of the reef), and other invertebrate animals.   Inside the large 4 foot deep tub is ; “live” sand and live rock. This system changes semester to semester and is used to support the many student aquarium projects. Life support for the black tub and holding tanks is located at the end, note,  the large quantity of Halimeda algae is used to recycle the nutrients.

7. Coral Farm Propagation - Research Project (100 gallons)–  students are currently revamping this project and should be completed in mid March 2007. Students and volunteers assist with cultivating fragments of corals pruned from our two Coral display tanks;  The Coral Garden and the Coral Lagoon.  Here they grow for students to use for independent projects.

8. Aquaponics (350 gallons) – this is a new area we are working on. Students enrolled in the MST 206 Aquatic System Design will be implementing changes to include adding a long 92" x 24" wide trough for "raft culturing a larger volume of plants. Look for our new Aquaponics class in Fall 2008!

9. Freshwater Tank (60 gallons) – Oscar, Tin-foil barb, Catfish and Plecostomas with plant refugium. some of these fish are over 10 years old and were adopted many, many years ago. Here they enjoy their life in our facility and are used as a demonstration and display.

10. Coral Garden (130 gallons)– these are the “mother colonies” from which we make cuttings or “frags” from for our coral farm. The tank must be pruned often as you can see they over grow quickly.

11. Student Projects (8 – 20 gallon tanks = 160 gallons) – these tanks are reserved from students enrolled in the MST 100 class, an excellent class to jump start a new career or augment a Marine Biology degree. They are set up and maintained during the semester as independent “reef tank” projects

12. Tank G-4: Clownfish Breeding Project, (20 gallon tank) – This is one of our young pairs of percula clownfish that are maturing for future breeding. We acquired them 9/03 from Harbor Branch Oceanographic Aquaculture Park. Note also the quantity of Halimeda algae used for “cleaning” the nutrients from the water.
* (The other pair of captive raised Percula clowns are located upstairs on the 2nd Floor display window next to the Biology Service Room, SM 234. Here you can also see our 175 gallon Tropical Fish Reef with an active, mature pair of Maroon Clowns, lays eggs every 6 weeks, and a variety of other tropical marine fish.)

13. Predator Reef, (200 gallon tank) – these are all tropical predators, of particular interest are the Lionfish (poisonous) and the Zebra Eel – both exhibit disruptive coloration. The Rock Hind exhibits cryptic coloration (see if you can find it.) We will be moving these into a 500 gallon exhibit next Fall 2007.

14. Life Support for the Predator Reef – this is where the water is filtered, scrubbed and returned to the main tank

Exit the door and view the large temperate water tank and the life support system on the patio. Enter the doorway into the Auxiliary Aquarium room and view many more: 

15. Temperate Water Rocky Reef (980 gallons) – these are our local animals; barred sand bass, opaleye, black surf perch, scorpion fish, a pair of local spiny lobsters.
    * Tidepool Tank is the small 25 gallon tank located above the  main tank and provides a niche for a variety of animals (that the lobsters would consume.) Note the surge device our students built to provide strong water movement for this large tank.

16. Auxillary Room (+750 gallons) – Most all are “temperate” cold water animals of our coastal area, with exception to the Coral Lagoon tank, which is tropical. Look to the right, then at the top row and bottom row of tanks. The middle section is reserved for student project investigations
 

	Strawberry Anemones, Corynactis califnornicus - a temperate corallimorpharian
The coral lagoon has "morphed" many times over the past 9 years. Initially set up as a coral frag tank and then auxilliary tank for live rocks with coral frags from end of the semester student project tanks. It now has an abundance of nutrient-tolerant corals; leather corals, corallimorphairans, Euphyllia divisa, zonanthids and star polyps
	Spawn-ready Purple Sea Urchins, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. We use these for the reproduction labs in the biology classes and also can be used for toxicity of water.

        To the right & bottom room                   Above; top row

  Coral Lagoon (tropical water)                    Corynactis anemone

  California Horn Sharks*                            Snails and hermits

  Large sea anemones                                  Sediment Urchins

 * Jellies Culture (closed)