Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida

09/17/2026

The Whitney Living Laboratory Takes Learning Outside

A collaboration with UF’s School of Landscape Architecture and Planning in the UF College of Design, Construction and Planning is bringing learning outside to allow the natural environment to serve as the teacher.

The Whitney Living Laboratory is a natural extension of the Discovery Lobby in the Whitney Marine Research Center. Visitors who begin their experience inside the lobby — with hands-on exhibits that introduce our science and sense of place — will now be invited to continue their journey outside to the natural world, reinforcing the core themes of exploration, stewardship, and science in action.

The design looks to transform an area of the coastal campus directly behind the Whitney Marine Research Center into a dynamic space for environmental education, public engagement, and place-based learning about coastal resilience and estuarine health. The Living Laboratory will include spaces for field-based instruction, educational displays, access to the nearby Matanzas Estuary and Whitney Pond, all surrounded by Florida native plants.

Full Story - https://www.whitney.ufl.edu/news--events/news/whitney-articles/2026/living-laboratory.html

📷Danny Sandler for DPR Construction

09/15/2026

Welcome back K-12 students and docents! We look forward to an exciting 2026-27 school year in our education programs.

09/13/2026

Updated Discovery Lobby and Gift Shop Hours!

📍 Discovery Lobby at the Whitney Marine Research Center, 9505 Ocean Shore Blvd., St. Augustine, FL 32080
🗓️ Wednesdays & Fridays
⏰ 10 AM – 2 PM

Plan your visit: https://www.whitney.ufl.edu/news--events/discovery-lobby-and-gift-shop/

📷: Courtesy of Lord Aeck Sargent Planning & Design and Copyright Jonathan Hillyer Photography

09/11/2026

09/10/2026

Evenings at Whitney Free Public Lecture tonight, September 10 at 6pm!

“Natural Products That Alter Sensory Perception and Their Use to Treat Chronic Pain” with Dr. Kevin J. Tidgewell, Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky.

📍 Join us in person at the lab, 9505 Ocean Shore Blvd., St. Augustine, or online –
https://ufl.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__Gge6bhSRIC-0hPOPlDINA
Discovery Lobby and Gift Shop open prior to the lecture from 5-5:45 p.m.

09/07/2026

Evenings at Whitney Free Public Lecture this Thursday, September 10 at 6 p.m.

Join us in person or online for “Natural Products That Alter Sensory Perception and Their Use to Treat Chronic Pain" with Dr. Kevin J. Tidgewell, Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky.

Register to watch online: https://ufl.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__Gge6bhSRIC-0hPOPlDINA

The Tidgewell lab works at the edges between natural products discovery, synthetic medicinal chemistry development, and neuroscience assay design.

His talk will explore projects on marine and terrestrial natural products for validation of traditional phytomedicines from Cameroon, the development of marine natural products and their analogs as chemical tools to better understand neuronal function/dysfunction in the context of neuropathic pain, and the development of a calcium imaging based assay to evaluate compounds for analgesic potential.

09/04/2026

The Whitney Laboratory is nestled amid a remarkable aquatic ecosystem known as the Matanzas estuary. In the lab's backyard is a convergence zone of three water bodies and the associated tributaries; Matanzas River, Atlantic Ocean and Pellicer Creek. The Matanzas River runs north to south and is heavily utilized as part of the Intracoastal waterway. The Atlantic Ocean rushes in just north of the lab at the Matanzas Inlet. Just south of the lab, the pristine and meandering Pellicer Creek brings nutrients from the land into the Matanzas estuary. #904

09/03/2026

Martindale Lab and colleagues from the University of Miami publish paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution that experimentally tests AI-predicted cytoplasmic regulation of an ancient cell signaling pathway. The results provide compelling evidence of the importance of studying early branching animals to understand and polarize evolutionary changes in protein structure and function in ancient cell signaling pathways that may provide insight into targeted therapies for human β-catenin regulation.

https://www.whitney.ufl.edu/news--events/news/whitney-articles/2026/martindale-ai-cell-signaling.html

Abstract. Emergence of Wnt/β-catenin signaling was a major metazoan innovation, yet how its core molecular interactions evolved remains unresolved. Here, w

09/01/2026

Whitney Lab Meeting and Event Spaces: Lastinger Family Foundation Interactive Area

Located on the first floor of the Center for Marine Studies, this reception hall features a two-story atrium overlooking the beautiful Matanzas Estuary. The space can accommodate up to 100 guests and tables and chairs are included with the rental.

Rental Information: https://www.whitney.ufl.edu/about/meeting-and-event-spaces/

08/31/2026

We were thrilled to welcome Dr. Veronica Hinman and Patrick Thompson from Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida for a familiarization tour of The Hub and Sid Martin Biotech. 🌊

The visit gave us a chance to share more about UF Innovate Accelerate's facilities, programs, and entrepreneurial ecosystem while learning more about the groundbreaking work happening at Whitney Laboratory.

This team is doing remarkable work at the intersection of marine bioscience, discovery, and translational research, and we're grateful for the chance to connect and learn from one another. Thanks for visiting!