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Morning at the Museum

Not only do we service your favorite hotels, markets, and restaurants, but we also supply seafood to local aquariums, museums, and zoos for feeding! We were able to get a behind the scenes tour at the Virginia Living Museum with aquarium curator, Patrycja Lawryniuk to check out their early morning feeding with the product we provide and even donate to keep their fish fed. Getting to see firsthand how our product is used allowed for us to get intimate with a side of the industry that many don’t think about, but we are proud to be a part of.

Fish diets tend to be variable and based on what is available in their surrounding environment but believe it or not their main source of protein comes from seafood! The Virginia Living Museum is home to over 150 species of fish, and a great deal of biology research goes into ensuring each species is getting fed properly. Diet matching is an important process to note for feeding. An example of this process would be to supply warm water fish with seafood that is found in warmer climates or providing freshwater fish with items that are found in freshwater environments.

We have top quality, well-informed fish mongers working with us here at Sam Rust Seafood, so we work with the curators to help them match the diets of the different species of fish based on their wild environment. Curator Patrycja mentioned the importance of providing a variable diet for their fish, so they feed with a combination of our fresh and frozen seafood. Just some of those products we offer for feeding is capelin, herring, a variety of fresh fish, shrimp, scallops, clams, and squid!

The Virginia Living Museum’s initiative is based on the framework of conservation, in which they are part of a local catch and release program. In providing the food and nourishment for their aquariums, we are also playing a role in the conservation of local fish. Just some of the critters that we provide for are sturgeons, striped bass, spadefish, lionfish, lobsters, a juvenile sandbar shark named Margarita, and even 30-year-old terrapin turtles!

Most of the feeding is done behind closed doors, however they do offer public feeding tours for their swamp and trout exhibits. Just call ahead or check out their website to see time slots for feeding fish, deer, birds, otters, and more!

Community

Community

Sam Rust partners with a number of local organizations as a way to give back to the community that supports us. We recognize the importance of supporting causes right here in Virginia, and take great care to source as much of our seafood from local boats and fishermen as possible.