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 Friday, March 7, 2008 Birch Aquarium at Scripps Recognized in Ranch & Coast Magazine's Annual 'Best' List Aquarium voted San Diego's Best Children's Activity Center or Museum Scripps Institution of Oceanography / University of California, San Diego Birch Aquarium at Scripps, the public exploration center for the world-renowned Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, has been named San Diego's Best Children's Activity Center or Museum in Ranch & Coast magazine's third-annual "Readers' Choice: Best of 2008" survey. Ranch & Coast Magazine "From the colorful displays of sea life to the aquarium's popular annual summer learning adventures ... Birch teaches kids about the ocean, the environment and how every individual can make a difference," the magazine reported. "We are very honored to be recognized by Ranch & Coast's readers," Birch Aquarium at Scripps Executive Director Nigella Hillgarth said. "We strive to create an educational and interactive atmosphere where children are not only entertained, but also inspired to respect and protect our fragile planet." Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Birch Aquarium at Scripps has an annual attendance of more than 400,000, including more than 77,000 school children, and features more than 5,000 animals representing 380 species. The hilltop site provides spectacular views of the Scripps Oceanography campus and the Pacific Ocean. Its mission is to provide ocean science education, to interpret Scripps research and to promote ocean conservation. Upcoming family events at Birch Aquarium at Scripps include Spring EGGS-travaganza from March 15-21, this season's naturalist-led Grunion Run adventures, and Summer Learning Adventure Camps. For more information, visit Birch Aquarium at Scripps or call 858-534-FISH. # # # Note to broadcast and cable producers: University of California, San Diego provides an on-campus satellite uplink facility for live or pre-recorded television interviews. Please phone or e-mail the media contact listed above to arrange an interview. Scripps Institution of Oceanography, at University of California, San Diego, is one of the oldest, largest and most important centers for global science research and education in the world. The National Research Council has ranked Scripps first in faculty quality among oceanography programs nationwide Now in its second century of discovery, the scientific scope of the institution has grown to include biological, physical, chemical, geological, geophysical and atmospheric studies of the earth as a system. Hundreds of research programs covering a wide range of scientific areas are under way today in 65 countries. The institution has a staff of about 1,300, and annual expenditures of approximately $155 million from federal, state and private sources. Scripps operates one of the largest U.S. academic fleets with four oceanographic research ships and one research platform for worldwide exploration. |
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