Lake Champlain is an integral part of the history and culture of Burlington, and it's home to a rich and diverse ecosystem. You can find out more about the natural world below the water's surface at ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center (formerly

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Lake Champlain is an integral part of the history and culture of Burlington, and it's home to a rich and diverse ecosystem. You can find out more about the natural world below the water's surface at ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center (formerly the Lake Champlain Basin Science Center), a living museum, aquarium, and learning center that houses more than 70 species of fish, invertebrates, amphibians, and reptiles, as well as traveling exhibitions and an educational multimedia theatre. Kids can become a watershed weather reporter, use a scraper and brush to dig up beluga whale bones, meet live frogs, and travel back in time to explore the Champlain Valley in prehistoric times.

ECHO stands for Ecology, Culture, History, and Opportunities, and the center provides all four. Located along the Burlington waterfront, ECHO offers interactive displays, activities and hands-on animal encounters daily on its 2.2-acre campus. It's located in the Leahy center, Vermont's first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified Green Building (and the only lake aquarium in the US with this designation) and home to the University of Vermont's Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, Lake Champlain Basin Program Resource Room, and Lake Champlain Navy Memorial.

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