An environmental education facility, the Manatee Viewing Center features learning tools for visitors of all ages. In the education building, you’ll find informational displays and DVD presentations about the life cycle of the Florida manatee.
Outside, you can learn about butterfly gardens, Florida-friendly landscaping, how solar power is generated through the photovoltaic panels on the education building’s roof. You can also see a wide variety of native and coastal plant life along the center’s tidal walk as well as animals in the wild that make the center’s habitat their home, and – when the temperature of Tampa Bay drops below 68 degrees Fahrenheit – manatees.
To make a reservation for your school or community group, simply fill out and submit this form.
In its dedication to education, the Manatee Viewing Center works frequently with local school and community groups. Sponsored in part by Tampa Electric and the Manatee Viewing Center, the 2008 Manatee Festival of the Arts Rain Barrel Contest featured the theme Manatee Education Through Water Conservation. Fourteen local groups, including students and a scout troop, participated in the contest by painting barrels donated by the Pepsi Bottling Group and converted to rain barrels by Manatee Viewing Center volunteers.
The Manatee Viewing Center placed the painted barrels on display and collected votes from visitors for first, second and third place prizes of $200, $150 and $100, respectively. Tampa Electric and the Apollo Beach Chamber of Commerce provided award money. Donors paid from $50 to $125 for the barrels, with proceeds going to the schools and scout troops that participated.
Tampa Electric and the Manatee Viewing Center are proud to salute the contestants, their artistic achievements, and creative messages of manatee and water conservation awareness.
