By Kathleen Schmitt
N.H. Sea Grant
603-749-1565

February 11, 2003

DURHAM, N.H. -- Are you looking for an educational program for your next meeting or event? The University of New Hampshire Marine Docents are eager to share their specialized knowledge as well as their love of the sea.

Volunteers-in-training look on, as UNH Marine Docent Dick Ferraro checks for sticklebacks, tiny fish that live in New Hampshire salt marshes. The UNH Marine Docents can bring their specialized knowledge of the sea and estuaries to your next meeting or event. (Photo by Edmund Chun Taite, Durham) Download photo here

UNH Marine Docents are volunteers who offer dozens of marine education programs tailored to schools, organizations or adult interest groups. Trained by UNH faculty and staff, they travel throughout New Hampshire and southern Maine offering on-site programs called SeaTreks.

For those interested in the state of the environment, the "Global Climate Change," "Aquaculture" and "Watersheds" SeaTrek programs provide intriguing and topical explorations. Newcomers to the Seacoast area as well as natives enjoy discovering local wonders through programs like "Gulf of Maine," "Isles of Shoals" and "Great Bay."

Those who want to understand nature in more detail benefit from "Plate Tectonics" and "Geology of New Hampshire." And those who simply love the sea are fascinated by "Oceans of Our Planet," "Rocky Shores," "Sandy Beaches," "Saltmarshes," "Seaweeds" and "Whales." Other SeaTrek programs that are customized for either adult or children's groups include: "Coastal Wildflowers," "Glaciers," "Ocean Commotion," "Origin of New Hampshire Landscapes" and "Polar Bears."

UNH Extension Specialist Sharon Meeker leads the UNH Marine Docents in a closer look at Great Bay mudflats along the Oyster River. (Photo by Edmund Chun Taite, Durham) Download photo here

Tours of Jackson Estuarine Laboratory on Great Bay's Adams Point are offered year round. In addition, the UNH Marine Docent Sea Chantey Singers can teach the traditional rhyming songs of sailors, or simply perform at your next event.

SeaTrek programs are $40 each and generally last 45 minutes to an hour. Most include presentations, images, demonstrations, and question and answer sessions. As an outreach program of the university, the UNH Marine Docents are a non-profit group supported by NH Sea Grant and UNH Cooperative Extension.

To learn more about SeaTrek programs, visit the UNH Marine Docent web site at www.unh.edu/marine-education. To receive a SeaTrek brochure or to make a reservation for a SeaTrek program (at least two weeks in advance), call or write Sharon Meeker (sharon.meeker@unh.edu) or Barbara Pinto-Maurer (barbara.pinto@unh.edu) at 603.749.1565, NH Sea Grant Extension, Kingman Farm/UNH, Durham, NH 03824.

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