When: Thursday, February 21 2019 at 6:00 p.m.

Where: Marine Discovery Center, 520 Barracuda Blvd, NSB, 32169

Cost: FREE

The lecture is open to the public at no charge and no reservations are required.

“Sawfish of Florida: Past, Present and Future” will be the topic of the Marine Discovery Center’s February public lecture.

Tonya Wiley, president of Havenworth Coastal Conservation in Palmetto, Fla., will be the guest speaker for the presentation, set for Thursday, Feb. 21, starting at 6 p.m.

Sawfish are large shark-like rays that once were relatively common in Florida estuaries, including the Indian River Lagoon. Florida’s sawfish are now endangered and scientists are attempting to learn more about this iconic and unique fish.

At the presentation, guests will be able to view a three-foot sawfish replica, feel actual sawfish rostra (saws) and learn facts about sawfish. Guests will also learn about current sawfish research and how they can help be involved in the recovery of the species.

Wiley has conducted conservation biological studies of sawfish since 2001, including research on the endangered smalltooth sawfish in Florida. An authority on the biology and ecology of the species, she is an appointed member of the National Marine Fisheries Service’s Smalltooth Sawfish Recovery Implementation Team – a multi-institutional panel of experts working to protect the remaining sawfish population in the United States and to prevent the species from extinction.

For nearly a decade, Wiley was a lead researcher with Mote Marine Laboratory’s Center for Shark Research, directing field surveys for smalltooth sawfish from Tampa Bay to the Florida Keys. She now leads Havenworth Coastal Conservation, founded to conserve coastal ecosystems through science and public outreach.

For more information about the lecture, contact the Marine Discovery Center at 386-428-4828.

The lecture is open to the public at no charge  |  No reservations are required
Early arrival is recommended ~ seating is limited.