NCRI Facilities 

Coral Nursery Center

The Coral Nursery Center is dedicated to research and development of methodologies for coral propagation and restoration efforts. The Marine Larval Ecology and Recruitment lab contains 8 tanks dedicated to the larval culture of corals and 8 raceway systems for coral larval settlement and early grow-out. The Tri-Annual Spawning Chamber lab contains 4 large raceways which use temperature and lighting cues to induce corals to spawn three times a year. The outdoor section of the Center currently contains 50 raceways dedicated to growing corals, quarantine areas, and experimentation. 

The Coral Nursery Center will add another 20 outdoor raceways in 2025-26, funded through Florida’s Coral Reef Restoration and Resilience initiative. Additionally, congressional earmark funding to retrofit an existing building on the Oceanographic Campus will further expand the Coral Nursery Center. This renovation will include additional tanks dedicated to the larval culture of “cleaning crew” herbivores to be co-cultured with corals as well as space dedicated to growing live food. It will also include a streamlined coral microfragmentation station with 4 raceways and a workshop to build and repair structures for the offshore nursery in support of outplanting activities. 

Offshore Coral Nursery

NCRI researchers maintain an Offshore Coral Nursery which propagates corals through fragmentation and provides acclimation for corals sexually-produced at the NSU’s Coral Nursery Center prior to outplanting. This nursery has the capacity to hold up to 11,000 coral fragments, with the intention to expand, and serves as a biobank for genotypes across Florida’s Coral Reef.

Laboratory Space

This state-of-the-art research facility features scientific laboratory space and equipment for 21 biological, chemical, physical, and geological marine research laboratories. Dry labs include the Histology lab; Microbiology and Genetics lab; Coral Reef Restoration and Monitoring (CRRAM) lab; Reef Ecology, Ecosystems, and Functions lab; GIS and Spatial Ecology lab; Physical Oceanography lab, and Fish Behavior, Ecology and Society lab. 

Wet labs include the Marine Toxicology lab which is equipped with 4 raceways dedicated to ecotoxicological experimentation in corals. 

Collaboration Spaces

The Oceanographic Campus houses collaboration spaces including an auditorium, which can seat over 100 attendees for meetings, in addition to a boardroom, research and seminar rooms, and a reception balcony and terrace. These spaces can be used for meetings, workshops, outreach events, and receptions.