Tidepool Walk
2018-02-10 11:30 - 13:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Stephen M. White Drive, San Pedro, CA, 90731, United States
CMA’s Educators conduct tours of the Point Fermin tidepools. Attend an informative slide show in the John M. Olguin Auditorium, then come along on the naturalist-led ramble on the rocks to see animals in their natural habitat. Outdoor clothing and sneakers advised. Young children must be accompanied by adults.
Reservations required for groups: 310-548-7562.
Fee: FREE.
En Espanol 12-1:30pm

Whale Fiesta
2018-01-28 10:00 - 15:00
Join us for tons of FREE fun as we celebrate the migration of the Pacific gray whale and the beginning of whalewatching season! It’s a family day filled with activities and exhibits for all – games, arts and crafts, puppet shows, marine awareness organizations, expert guest lecturers and festive music.
Merriments include the building of a life-sized sand sculpture of a Pacific gray whale and its calf. For those with a competitive edge, enter the Duct Tape Whale Sculpture Contest.
Whale Fiesta is a FREE event sponsored by the Port of Los Angeles.
Photo Courtesy NOAA Fisheries

Sunset Tidepool Walk
2017-12-20 15:00 - 16:30
CMA’s Educators conduct tours of the Point Fermin tidepools. Attend an informative slide show in the John M. Olguin Auditorium, then come along on the naturalist-led ramble on the rocks to see animals in their natural habitat. Outdoor clothing and sneakers advised. Young children must be accompanied by adults.
Reservations required for groups: 310-548-7562.
Fee: FREE.

Tidepool Walk
2017-12-19 14:30 - 16:00, 2017-02-11 14:30 - 16:00, 2016-12-24 11:30 - 13:00
Cabrillo Marine Aquarium’s Educators conduct tours of the Point Fermin tidepools. Attend an informative slide show in the John M. Olguin Auditorium, then come along on the naturalist-led ramble on the rocks to see animals in their natural habitat. Outdoor clothing and sneakers advised. Young children must be accompanied by adults.
Reservations required for groups: 310-548-7562.
Fee: FREE.

Do Swimming Animals Mix the Ocean?
2017-12-01 19:00 - 21:00
Discovery Lecture Series
presented by AltaSea and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
By John O. Dabiri, Stanford
The oceans are teeming with trillions of swimming organisms, from bacteria to blue whales. Current research efforts in biological oceanography often focus on the impact of the marine environment on the organisms within. We ask the opposite question: can organisms in the ocean, especially those that migrate vertically every day and regionally every year, change the physical and/or biogeochemical structure of the water column?

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium Gift Shop Open House
2017-11-26 12:00 - 17:00
Dive into oceans of great gifts at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium’s Gift Shop! Enjoy yummy refreshments while browsing hundreds of collectible ornaments, fascinating books and specially curated ocean-themed gifts as part of Museum Store Sunday. In addition, several accomplished artists and artisans from the local community will showcase and sell their wares.#museumstoresunday

Autumn Sea Fair
2017-11-19 10:00 - 15:00
Celebrate the bounty of the sea with fun-in-the-sun games and hometown spirit at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium’s Autumn Sea Fair!
Children of all ages will enjoy ocean-related activities throughout the day, including face-painting, origami lessons and gyotaku, the Japanese art of fish printing. Dig out your inner pirate and join in the search for buried treasure, learn how to cast a fishing rod, and use recycled materials we provide to compete in the Ocean Monster costume contest.
This event is FREE.

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium "Sea Scare"
2017-10-28 19:00 - 22:00
The best family Halloween party is back and only at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium! Sea Scare is washing ashore with lots of thrills, chills and gills. Guests can trick-or-treat at 13 different treat stations, participate in creepy crafts, experience dreadful demonstrations, enjoy apparitional activities, dance like a zombie in the Party Zone or experience our haunted maze. Food trucks will also be on-site to help you tame your hunger. So come in costume and join in on the masquerade of ghosts and goblins, it’s sure to be a frightfully good time for the whole family!
Members attend for FREE – become a member today! Or purchase your tickets now at a discounted price! The event may sell out. Processing fees apply online.

Ecological Consequences of Thermal Stress on Wave-Swept Shores
2017-10-06 19:00 - 21:00
Discovery Lecture Series
presented by AltaSea and Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
Ecological Consequences of Thermal Stress on Wave-Swept Shores: Insights from a Model Ecosystem
By Bengt J. Allen, California State University, Long Beach
Increasing temperature variability associated with rapid climate change is likely to be an important driver of biological disturbance over the next few decades, as it increases the risk that species’ stress thresholds will be exceeded. In response to a thermal challenge, many organisms exhibit characteristic physiological changes resulting in greater tolerance to subsequent high temperatures.

Sustainable Seafood Expo
2017-10-01 10:00 - 17:00
The Expo provides great opportunities to sample new seafood options and see professional chefs turn sustainable seafood into dishes that you and your family can prepare at home. Experts are on hand to explain fisheries, habitats, species management, and a host of other factors that affect each species. More than a dozen non-profit and educational exhibitors will share information about their work to protect the ocean, its marine life and the environment. Our speaker panel is made up of top researchers and environmentalists who will discuss pressing ocean-related issues. We’ll also screen short films throughout the event on a range of relevant seafood and ocean health topics.
Schedule:
10:00 a.m. Aquarium opens
12:00 p.m. Sustainable Seafood Expo begins
12:05 p.m. Introductory remarks by CMA Director Mike Schaadt and FCMA Executive Director Caroline Brady
12:10 p.m. Cooking Demo featuring J. Trani’s
12:50 p.m. Cooking Demo featuring Tender Greens
1:25 p.m. Panel Discussion
2:10 p.m. Cooking Demo featuring Terranea Resort
2:45 p.m. Keynote: Adrian Grenier followed by Q & A
3:30 p.m. Cooking Demo featuring Omega Blue Seafood
4:10 p.m. Cooking Demo featuring Salty Girl Seafood
5:00 p.m. Aquarium closes

Sea Otter Awareness Week
2017-09-18 13:00 - 15:00
As part of this special week set aside to raise the profile of a sea otters, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium will provide visitors with the chance to get an “inside look” at this endangered species.
Visit the Exploration Center where we will have a fully articulated sea otter skeleton on display all week. Come find out what a sea otter eats! There will be lots of specimens on display.
In the Kelp Forest room in the Exhibit Hall, there will be a table set up with sea otter specimens. Get inside a sea otter’s head by taking a close look at a skull and see if you notice anything unusual. There will also be a pelt on display showcasing the sea otter’s thick fur. Without blubber, sea otters rely on their fur to keep warm in cold ocean water. Sea otters have the densest fur of any mammal with close to one million hairs per square inch!
Sea Otter Awareness Week Display Schedule
Sunday, September 24, 1-3pm
Monday, September 25, AQUARIUM CLOSED
Tuesday, September 26, 1-3pm
Wednesday, September 27, 1-3pm
Thursday, September 28, 1-3pm
Friday, September 29, 1-3pm
Saturday, September 30, 1-3pm
So stop by CMA during Sea Otter Awareness Week and learn more about their insides and outsides, their important role in California’s kelp forest ecosystem, the animals they eat and other fascinating sea otter facts! Also, take time to visit CMA’s library and peruse sea otter books and pick up your very own sea otter fact sheet.
Afterwards, stop by CMA Gift Shop and shop for fun sea otter items!
Photo Courtesy Beral/Corbis

Summer Whale Watch
2017-08-20 09:00 - 12:00
Join CMA on a search for great whales, such as blue, fin, humpback and minke whales, that visit our coast during the summer.
Some of the largest whales in the world feed along our nutrient-rich coastline this time of year. CMA wildlife experts will join you on this adventure to catch a glimpse of these magnificent leviathans of the deep.
One of these great whales is the largest of all whales in the world, the endangered blue whale. Researchers believe there are only about 10,000 blue whales left in all the world’s oceans, but a thriving population of 2,000 of them can be seen along the California coast during the summer feeding on massive amounts of krill, small shrimp-like organisms.
The waters between Los Angeles and Catalina have become a regular stop for some of these feeding blue whales as they migrate to breeding grounds off of Costa Rica during the winter.
Guests will board the 90-foot yacht, Spirit, in San Pedro and head out to sea in search of whales and other marine life including many species of dolphins and seabirds.
Reservations are required. Please call (310) 548-7562.
Member Price: $25, Non-Member Price: $30

Arctic Climate
2017-08-04 19:00 - 21:00
ARCTIC CLIMATE, AS DOCUMENTED BY ALGAL ROCKS AT THE CABRILLO MARINE AQUARIUM
The Cabrillo Marine Aquarium (CMA) invites you to meet Claremont McKenna College Professor Branwen Williams an Oceanographer at the Discovery Lecture Series presented by AltaSea and CMA. Professor Williams uses the skeletons of marine organisms as tools to understand recent changes in the climate. She has worked throughout the world’s oceans from the tropics to the poles, focusing primarily on extracting records of oceanic and atmospheric change from the skeletons of coralline algae and corals. This is a free lecture and will be held in the John M. Olguin Auditorium. Space is limited; please call the Aquarium at (310) 548-7562 to reserve your seat(s) or RSVP to lecture@cmaqua.org.

Meet the Grunion
2017-07-24 20:00, 2017-07-11 20:00, 2017-06-25 20:00
From March through July, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium presents special evening programs to introduce you to the unique and elusive grunion.
At times the beach may look as if it is covered in a blanket of silver as the wriggling fish arrive to mate. The females burrow into the sand to lay eggs while the males wrap around them in order to fertilize the eggs. Then both males and females catch the next wave back out to sea. The fertilized eggs incubate for about nine days in the sand before the tumbling action of the waves from the next series of high tides cause them to hatch as they are carried back out to sea.
The Aquarium opens at 8 p.m. Guests must arrive before 9pm to participate in the full program in the auditorium, followed by a guided observation. Dress warmly and bring a flashlight to spot grunion at the beach. Program admission is $5 for adults and $1 children/seniors/students with I.D. Buy tickets at the door or pre-purchase your tickets at Meet the Grunion to guarantee admission. Processing fees apply.
#cmagrunion

Family Sandcastle Day
2017-07-22 11:00 - 15:00
Relive your favorite memories and create new ones during Cabrillo Marine Aquarium’s Family Sandcastle Day! This event is free and open to everyone. All you need to bring is your best sandcastle building tools, a little shovel and bucket, and your castle creativity to this fun beach event. The sand on Cabrillo Beach will be thoroughly wet down to prepare for sand construction; the rest is up to you!
All castle styles are welcome: moats, draw bridges, spires, windows, turrets; let your imagination run wild, but most importantly, have a great time at the beach with family and loved ones. Don’t forget to bring your camera to capture Kodak moments and your sandcastle handiwork.
If you don’t have beach building tools on hand, stop by the Gift Shop for supplies. While you’re here visit the Aquarium exhibit hall, which features 37 tanks containing the largest collection of Southern California marine life in the world and a touch tank that provides up-close encounters with local marine life.

The Smog of the Sea
2017-06-25 13:00 - 15:00
Movie: The Smog of the Sea
Algalita is presenting a free screening of THE SMOG OF THE SEA, a documentary from filmmaker Ian Cheney that chronicles a research expedition through the Sargasso Sea. Stay after to hear Captain Charles Moore speak about his recent voyage to the South Pacific Gyre!
After years of hearing about ocean “garbage patches,” the crew of the 5 Gyres SEA Change research expedition is stunned to learn they are actually a “fog” of microplastics — trillions of barely visible shards—permeating the world’s oceans. How do you stop a fog? Using sparkling underwater cinematography, an original score by Jack Johnson and shipmate Simon Beins, and live-action footage of the crew’s research, THE SMOG OF THE SEA makes an artful call to action for rethinking single-use plastic.
The movie and talk will take place at CMA in the John M. Olguin auditorium.
Please click here to RSVP.

Salt Marsh Open House
2017-06-17 11:00 - 13:00
Join CMA Educators to learn about the Salinas de San Pedro wetlands habitat at Cabrillo Beach by using binoculars and microscopes to observe live animals. Visitors can view the birds of the marsh, learn about native plants and observe the changes in the tides.
Fee: FREE; open to all ages.

Discovery Lecture Series
2017-06-02 19:00 - 21:00
Presented by AltaSea & Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is collaborating with our new “neighbor,” the world-class urban marine research and innovation center, AltaSea. The 35-acre campus at the Port of Los Angeles will be dedicated to uniting global marine research, education, business, government philanthropy and community.
We are jointly hosting a Discovery Lecture Series in 2017 on select Fridays from 7pm to 9pm at the Aquarium in the John M. Olguin Auditorium.
Guest Speaker: Stephen Weisberg, Southern California Coastal Water Research Project (SCCWRP)
Advances in beach water quality monitoring
Beach water quality monitoring has undergone a huge transformation in the last two decades as we have started to transition from traditional culture-based methods to genomic-based methods for quantifying bacteria. These new methods allow us to provide answers more quickly, leading to a better warning system for the public. Genetic information captured by these new molecular methods also allows us to better define what type of animal served as the fecal source when contamination occurs.

Tide Pool Walk
2017-05-06 11:30 - 13:00

Earth Day at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
2017-04-22 09:00 - 12:00
Lend a Hand and help Clean-up at Cabrillo Beach.
Afterwards join the Naturalist-lead walk to the Point Fermin Tidepools.

Sustainability Fest
2017-04-15 10:00 - 15:00
Saturday, April 15, 2017
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Join Cabrillo Marine Aquarium as we celebrate caring for our Earth. Drop by to interact with local agencies and environmental groups, and find out what you can do to make a positive impact on our community’s environmental foot print! Learn about our coastal environment and take part in our salt marsh open house, habitat walks, coastal bird walks and sustainability “quick shops” from experts in the field.
Come to CMA’s Sustainability Fest to discover the ways YOU can make a difference in protecting this fragile place with call Earth.
10am – 3pm: SUSTAINABILITY FEST in the CMA Courtyard
10 – 10:45am: Yoga in the Salt Marsh (pre-registration required)
10am – 12pm: Salt Marsh Open House

Discovery Lecture Series
2017-04-07 19:00 - 21:00
Presented by AltaSea & Cabrillo Marine Aquarium
Cabrillo Marine Aquarium is collaborating with our new “neighbor,” the world-class urban marine research and innovation center, AltaSea. The 35-acre campus at the Port of Los Angeles will be dedicated to uniting global marine research, education, business, government philanthropy and community.
We are jointly hosting a Discovery Lecture Series in 2017 on select Fridays from 7pm to 9pm at the Aquarium in the John M. Olguin Auditorium.
Guest Speaker: Kristy L. Forsgren, California State University, Fullerton
Ovaries, Testes, and Copulatory Structures – Oh My! The Importance of Understanding Reproduction of Fishes
Fishes comprise approximately half of all vertebrate species, occupying both fresh and saltwater habitats in temperatures ranging from 0–40 degrees Celsius. However, it is fish reproduction that exhibits some of the most extraordinary variation among vertebrates. Not only is fish reproduction interesting, but a comprehensive understanding of fish reproduction is imperative in protecting our fish populations…Read More

47th Annual Whale Fiesta
2017-01-29 10:00 - 15:00
Join us in celebrating the 47th annual Whale Fiesta! This fun-filled family event, co-sponsored by Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Cetacean Society, celebrates marine mammals and the migration of Pacific gray whales along Southern California’s coast.
More than 20 marine life organizations will exhibit and provide information about their efforts to raise awareness and provide protection for these animals. Throughout the day expert Cabrillo Whalewatch naturalists will give talks on various marine mammals.
The highlight of the day is the Great Duct Tape Whale Contest, where model whales and other sea creatures are created by all ages. Other special activities throughout the day include face painting, music, marine mammal-related arts and crafts projects for all ages, a puppet show, a life-sized walk-through whale and a passport contest for fabulous prizes.
The celebration’s grand finale will be Whale Dynamics, where participants will be transformed into a single “living whale.”
The Aquarium’s Exploration Center, Aquatic Nursery and the Library will be open to visitors 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Spend the whole day enjoying all the activities for free!

Cabrillo Art Corner
2017-01-07 10:00 - 14:00
Have fun doing arts and crafts the first Saturday of the month. Each Cabrillo Art Corner features a unique ocean-themed project that jump starts your creativity, engages your senses and relaxes your mind. Focus on the task at hand and forget about life’s craziness for awhile. We hope you’ll join us!
Fee: FREE; open to all ages.

New Year's Tidepool Walk
2017-01-01 15:00 - 16:30
Join us for the first tidepool walk of 2017!
CMA’s Educators conduct tours of the Point Fermin tidepools. Attend an informative slide show in the John M. Olguin Auditorium, then come along on the naturalist-led ramble on the rocks to see animals in their natural habitat. Outdoor clothing and sneakers advised. Young children must be accompanied by adults.
Reservations required for groups: 310-548-7562.
Fee: FREE.

Final Tidepool Walk of 2016
2016-12-31 15:00 - 16:30
