South Carolina Aquarium

It's important to celebrate milestones, big... and small. We recently admitted our smallest sea turtle patient ever, a Kemp's ridley named Chia! Chia, weighing a whopping 1.4 pounds, was found by a recreational fisherman a few miles offshore. This tiny sea turtle, about as heavy as 1.5 loaves of bread, was entangled in plastic debris which wounded her/his front right flipper and the right side of the head and eye. Shortly after admit to our Sea Turtle Care Center™, Chia’s eye was examined by Dr. Anne Cook from Animal Eye Care Associates to look for severe injury and Chia underwent surgery to amputate the injured portion of the right front flipper.  We've replaced tiny with another "t" to describe Chia: tenacious! Chia is now recovering from surgery, swimming well in deeper water and eating regularly. The road to recovery is long, so join us in cheering on Chia! All sea turtle conservation work is authorized by the SC Department of Natural Resources Marine Turtle Permit No. 2024-0004

Pops of red dotted the Folly Beach horizon this morning as we brought transport bins — six rehabilitated sea turtle patients safely tucked inside — down to the surf. A cheerful celebration followed as Babka, Butter, Crepe, Flapjack, MoJo and Sunny Side returned back to the wild to become reproductive members of their population.    There were striking similarities between these sea turtles’ respective stories: - All are Kemp's ridley sea turtles, the most endangered sea turtle species in the world - All were admitted to the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Care Center™ after being hooked by fishermen  - All were adorably named after breakfast items   These six sea turtles join the 424 others who have been rescued, rehabilitated and released throughout our Aquarium history — an astonishing statistic that serves as a powerful reminder of our collective impact. 💙

Meet Quiche, a juvenile green sea turtle recently admitted into our care 💚 Since intake, Quiche’s journey has been nothing short of miraculous. This little turtle narrowly avoided paralysis from a boat strike wound to her/his carapace (top shell), but faced bigger hurdles still with a deep wound around the left front flipper, leaving amputation as the only lifesaving option.   Now recovering on a feeding tube and in the safety of a shallow kiddie pool, Quiche has quickly won the hearts of many. Despite facing seemingly insurmountable odds, Quiche has been a fighter throughout the entirety of her/his rehabilitation.   Rehabilitating sick and injured sea turtles takes time, effort, expertise and funds. We always aim to remind our guests that their admission to the Aquarium is what allows us to continue treating sea turtles like Quiche.    All sea turtle conservation work is authorized by the SC Department of Natural Resources Marine Turtle Permit No. 2024-0004

This past week, we served as a host to the NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration 2024 Coastal Ecosystem Learning Centers (CELC) Youth Summit 🌎 Eager young environmentalists from Aquarium of the Pacific, Mystic Aquarium, Audubon Aquarium, New York Aquarium, Oregon Coast Aquarium and Shedd Aquarium spent three days with our high school interns, Teen Conservation Crew mates and Aquarium educators to explore a myriad of local conservation topics. Students heard from a variety of speakers on topics covering environmental advocacy, scientific outreach, community resilience and more. In addition to interactive lectures, students toured the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Marine Resources Center and came face-to-face with a variety of with marine life, as well as assisted in the construction of wire reef builds to support local saltmarshes. A huge thank you to everyone involved in the operation of this incredible experience, and for helping to place these teens at the forefront of climate resilience!

We’ve been trekking across the state and beyond in our new hybrid conservation outreach vehicle, generously gifted through the Michael and Pam Wilson Family Fund. Whether we are collecting data on plastic pollution at litter sweeps, recruiting new Good Catch partners or educating residents about sea level rise and resilience efforts, this vehicle has enabled us to connect thousands of South Carolinians with the water, wildlife and wild places we care so deeply about.

Take a moment and celebrate #WorldBlueMindDay with us 💙 Covering 71% of Earth's surface, water connects all of us on this blue planet. Whether it's providing peace, easing anxiety and stress, decreasing blood pressure or inspiring creativity, water is a powerful force. Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, blue mind pioneer and our friend, brought awareness, science, collaboration and deep friendships to communities across our world by sharing blue marbles wherever he went. This small sphere symbolizes the innate connection we have with water, and reminds us to take a blue mind moment when we need it, too.

Happy #NationalKeeperWeek! Each and every member of our animal care team pours their heart and soul into caring for the thousands of animals who call the Aquarium home. From cleaning habitats to supporting animal conservation in the field, our keepers are dedicated to providing and upholding the highest level of animal care and wellbeing for both the animals in the Aquarium and their counterparts in the wild. Check back throughout the week as we highlight a few of our keepers and their favorite ways to care for our animals!

It’s been a few weeks since the news of Dr. Wallace J. Nichols' passing, and it’s still hard to put into words the profound impact he had on our institution. J’s pioneering work on “blue mind” — the concept that proximity to water can lower anxiety and stress levels, bolster feelings of happiness and calm and inspire creativity and understanding of the world and of those around us — led to many efforts of our own focusing on mental health and wellbeing for our guests and staff alike.    "Blue mind is part of our language, culture, strategic programming and organizational blueprint within our team here at the Aquarium. It fits firmly into our vision of connecting people to water, wildlife and wild places," said Brian Thill, director of education at the Aquarium. "We will continue to intentionally build off of J’s legacy by interpreting blue mind to our visitors, encouraging breaks on our blue chairs overlooking the Charleston Harbor, sharing best blue mind practices at conferences, hosting workshops for mental health practitioners and partnering with other blue mind professionals." J’s presence will forever be felt in the work that we do, in the stories he shared with us during visits and in the blue marbles we often pass around to remind one another to take a break and enjoy the benefits of water, both within our walls and beyond.

With support from Southern Environmental Law Center and the City of Folly Beach, Folly Beach is now home to 10 SeaRise signs! These signs have been placed in flood-prone areas throughout the city to help collect data on the depth and movement of flood water. By submitting an image of the SeaRise sign and ruler to the SeaRise Project, located in the South Carolina Aquarium Citizen Science app, residents and visitors to Folly Beach are helping refine flood models so we can more accurately predict future flooding and plan accordingly. Even if you don't find a SeaRise sign near you, you can foster a flooded area that you encounter on a regular basis! By submitting photos regularly in the same location over time, your images are turned into high-quality data. Join the SeaRise Project today so you can be ready for the next time it floods:  https://lnkd.in/etdkN6UX 

Today, we celebrate #InternationalPlasticBagFreeDay with some exciting news that supports our community — as of July 1, extra-thick plastic bags are now banned in the City of Charleston and James Island, Folly Beach and Mount Pleasant’s bans on these single-use plastic bags are not far behind! Data from the Litter Journal, a project in the South Carolina Aquarium Citizen Science app, was used to present supportive claims for this ban in numerous hearings. Thanks to the dedication of hundreds of citizen scientists, this collective action from our community is helping to protect water, wildlife and wild places. Learn more about the South Carolina Aquarium Citizen Science app: https://lnkd.in/etdkN6UX