Clearwater Marine Aquarium

It’s time for a sea turtle nesting season wrap-up! Despite sea turtle nesting season getting cut short by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, Clearwater Marine Aquarium’s sea turtle nesting team saw an increase in sea turtle nests during the 2024 season. Check out the sea turtle nesting stats below. CMA documented 271 nests this year along Pinellas county beaches - this was an increase from the 227 nests found in 2023. This year, CMA’s nesting team documented the first leatherback sea turtle nest in Pinellas county. The team even witnessed the nest successfully hatching! Hurricanes washed out a large percentage of active nests at different points during the season. Hurricane Debby washed out nests in August, while Hurricane Helene destroyed the remaining nests in September. 325 false crawls were documented this season, a stark increase from last year’s 240 false crawls. These events occur when sea turtle mothers come onto the beach but do not deposit their eggs. These events are often caused by obstructions such as sandcastles, holes in the sand, beach furniture, and more. All marine turtle footage taken in Florida was obtained with the approval of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) under conditions not harmful to marine turtles. Footage was acquired while conducting authorized conservation activities pursuant to FWC MTP-24/25-263 and MTP-24/25-013.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium would like to express gratitude to Lowe's Companies, Inc. of Riverview, including Damon Killick and Pedro DeJesus, for their generous donation of 5 sets of washers and dryers with pedestals, a refrigerator, a chest freezer, and 5 dehumidifiers to assist in CMA’s recovery from Hurricane Helene and Milton. CMA's Chief Operating Officer Anthony Rivera was able to present the Lowe's staff with a basket as a small token of thanks. The outpouring of generosity and support from our local community and beyond has been overwhelming. To say we are thankful is an understatement!

Congratulations are in order! Last night, Clearwater Marine Aquarium’s Chief Operating Officer Anthony Rivera was presented with an award from TITAN 100 being recognized as one of Tampa’s Top 100 CEOs & C-level executives! This prestigious award recognizes the area’s most accomplished business leaders in the industry and this is the inaugural year of Titan 100 in Tampa. Collectively, the 2024 Tampa Titan 100 honorees and their companies employ upwards of 55,000 individuals and generate over $24 Billion in annual revenues. #Titan100

Big news! CMA now has a specialty license plate. ?????????? Pre-sale vouchers for the official Clearwater Marine Aquarium specialty license plates are available now! Proceeds of each voucher sold will go toward CMA’s mission to rescue, rehab, and release marine life and help us continue our animal care, education, research and conservation efforts. We need your help to reach our goal of 3,000 vouchers in order to start producing these official Clearwater Marine Aquarium license plates and receive funds soon! To purchase your official CMA license plate pre-sale voucher, order yours at the link below or visit your local Tax Collector’s office in person to request a pre-sale voucher for the Clearwater Marine Aquarium specialty license plate. https://lnkd.in/gWc8uZ8Y

Clearwater Marine Aquarium, together with our community around Tampa Bay, has been making strides toward recovery after Hurricanes Helene and Milton impacted Florida. As we celebrate reopening this week, we are offering Florida Residents special admission. Florida Residents save $10 on general admission with valid FL ID. We are also thankful for the life-saving and rebuilding efforts that helped restore power and safety to our communities. First responders and linemen will also save $10 off general admission with valid ID. Together, we will make Clearwater shine again. We look forward to welcoming you back to the aquarium to enjoy the beauty of marine life with family and friends. Your visit supports our ongoing recovery efforts, care for our animals and helps us continue our mission of marine conservation and education. Get tickets now at cmaquarium.org.

We are back! Clearwater Marine Aquarium will reopen for daytime hours tomorrow, October 21, from 10AM - 5PM. We can’t wait to see you! Please read the vital information below in order to make your visit a great one. ?? Some areas of the aquarium will be closed, including the Manatee Rehabilitation Center, while we continue repairs and recovery efforts. ?? Animal Care Experiences, Guided Tours, and Eco-Boat tours will all be available for purchase. ?? Aqua Lanterns have taken over the aquarium! You can still enjoy their beauty in the daytime. This experience is included in your general admission ticket. Get tickets to come SEA us! cmaquarium.org

Grateful doesn’t even begin to cover it! We are overwhelmed with the support from our followers, fans, industry partners, and other businesses in the community following Hurricane Helene and Milton. Since the storms, we have received nearly 200 items from our wish list. We still have many items to replace and repair. Check out our wish list items we are still seeking here: https://lnkd.in/gjgJ54TC Please ship to Clearwater Marine Aquarium Warehouse ATTN: Wish List at 1415 South MLK jr. Ave Clearwater, FL 33756. Contact [email protected] if you have any items to drop off or other questions about donations.

Only one sleep left until the opening of Aqua Lanterns! We’re so excited to debut this Chinese Festival of Lights this Friday - Sunday from 6:30-9:30PM. As a reminder, we will only be open evening hours this weekend and will reopen with regular hours 10AM-5PM starting on Monday 10/21. Aqua Lanterns will continue Wednesday - Sunday every week now through the holidays! Visit our website for exact dates: https://lnkd.in/eFSHK9xF

We're thrilled to announce that Clearwater Marine Aquarium will reopen this Friday at 6:30PM with limited evening hours this weekend after being closed for nearly three weeks due to Hurricanes Helene and Milton! We'll be unveiling a special exhibit: Aqua Lanterns: A Chinese Festival of Lights. This enchanting display features stunning marine life sculptures, creating a captivating experience for visitors of all ages. We invite you to visit CMA and enjoy some well-deserved time with family and friends. We are hoping to open to the public with regular operating hours next week. Get tickets for Aqua Lanterns now at: https://brnw.ch/21wNN1X Your visit supports our ongoing animal care and recovery efforts and will help us continue our mission of marine conservation and education. We look forward to welcoming you back. Together, we will make Clearwater shine again! ?? Aqua Lanterns: A Chinese Festival of Lights - Opening October 18 from 6:30-9:30PM ?? Boat tours: Resuming Wednesday October 16 - 12:00PM and 2:00PM

Following Hurricane Helene and Milton, Clearwater Marine Aquarium conducted an assessment of repairs that are still needed today. We have power restored at our facility, and we are tentatively aiming to open this Wednesday. We will share more information about upcoming events and exhibits once we can confirm our reopening date. Our dedicated team has been working tirelessly to prepare everything and we can’t wait to welcome guests again! Thanks to many generous donors, Clearwater Marine Aquarium has been able to raise over $150,000 in funds, which have helped us continue our recovery efforts while being closed for over 18 days due to impacts from the hurricanes. We greatly appreciate your support and patience as we work to reopen. https://lnkd.in/gcbtAQhu