At Bantayan, Dumaguete City, and near the Silliman beach, is the Silliman University Marine Lab. According to its website, it was established in 1974 as a marine research facility.
There are several buildings and structures in the area, but Bee and I checked out the Discovery/Information building first.
Discovery Building
Right outside the building is displayed the skull and jaw bone of a sperm whale that beached in Siquijor. SUML recovered the bones from Siquijor in 2000 and it took nine hours to transport it to Dumaguete by pumpboat.
Inside the Discovery/Information building is the Our Seas, Our Life exhibit. There are stuffed marine animals on display, as well as a collection of sea shells.
Different types of turtles:
Bone from a whale shark:
Dugong skeleton:
Armored Sea Robins:
Starfish:
Giant clam shells:
Puffers or Balloon fish:
Crocodile:
Culture Tanks
A path behind the Discovery building leads you to the culture tanks. A number of them are used for rearing the Giant Clam.
The rest have colorful fish like these:
Old tires like these are used in making the artificial reefs:
There were Philippine crocodile pens nearby but Bee didn't want to go anywhere near them.
Whale Bone Museum
We found ourselves looking into a room full of whale bone upon opening the door of the building behind the tanks.
Smack in the center and dominating everything is the skull/jaw bone of a Bryde's whale:
Lots of huge whale bones are stacked against one wall:
Silliman University boasts that this room actually has the second largest collection of whale and dolphin bones in the world.
The melon headed whale is a large dolphin.
Marine Lab Building
Near the public parking area is the new marine lab building, built in the late 1990s with funds from USAID.
On the ground floor is an aquarium containing colorful small fishes, live coral and anemones.
There is also a small room with a collection of sea shells.
The laboratories are upstairs.
Coconut Trees Rule!
Rows of coconut trees are found outside the New Marine Lab building, and the lowly pedestrian is advised to watch out for falling coconuts.
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