The Wetland and Aquatic Research Center (WARC) was formed in 2015, pulling together two long-standing science centers, the National Wetlands Research Center and the Southeast Ecological Science Center, both of which have roots in building scientific knowledge and providing understanding and tools to policy makers and managers in their stewardship of natural resources.
WARC - Lafayette, Louisiana: Formerly the National Wetlands Research Center (NWRC)
The NWRC began in 1975 as part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Office of Biological Servives. The National Coastal Ecosystems Team, as the NWRC was originally named, moved from Stennis, Mississippi, to Slidell, Louisiana, in 1979. The Team was given a research mission and renamed as the NWRC in 1986. In 1992, the NWRC moved to Lafayette, Louisiana, and joined the U.S. Geological Survey in 1994.
WARC - Gainesville, Florida: Formerly the Southeast Ecological Science Center (SESC)
in 1977, out of the increasing frequency of non-native fish species released in open waters, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife established a National Fishery Research Laboratory, one of 12, in Gainesville, Florida. The facility became the National Fisheries Research Center in 1987. Over the next several years, the center moved from the National Biological Survey to the National Biological Service before finally joining the U.S. Geological Survey in 1994.
