Every month our Volunteer office sorts through piles of nominations from supervisors and honors one of our volunteers for their truly stupendous efforts. Meet our latest Volunteer of the Month!

We started 2014 off with one of our longest serving volunteers in a very public facing role (Visitor Education Volunteer, Noel Jette!) and now we’re ending 2014 by awarding a volunteer just coming up on her 6-month commitment who has already become a go-to resource in a very critical behind-the-scenes role, the Aquarium Medical Center.

Here’s what Bryce Van Cleef's supervisor, Biologist Kerry McNally, had to say:

Bryce began volunteering with the medical center on Wednesdays in August. Since her arrival, she has been a huge help. She has managed to survive moray eel procedures, iPad disasters and all the other crazy happenings that tend to occur on Wednesdays. She always remains calm and collected during these activities while still bringing a comfort, and later, laughter (when appropriate) to the situation.

Bryce is one of those volunteers that will anticipate our needs. There have been countless times I have gone to ask her to help with something and she has already done it, or in the midst of doing the task before I even have the chance to ask. It is always a relief to know she has our back and we can count on her. She is a very dedicated volunteer, even coming in after an overnight shift with the Coast Guard to help with barb clips that were rescheduled to a day that was not her typical schedule. Bryce is a wonderful person, both professional and fun to work with. We are very pleased to be working with her and she deserves the recognition for all of her hard work.  

Please join our team in congratulating Bryce!

Putting on the finishing touches

This past summer, the Aquarium’s dedicated penguin biologists successfully raised five penguin chicks. One of those successful parent pairs is an African penguin couple named Dehoop (mom) and Good Hope (dad) that hatched and raised a new chick named Jahleel.

Penguin family

Nearly every year, the Aquarium’s talented penguin staff help produce a new batch of penguin chicks to help sustain and grow threatened and endangered penguin populations in North American aquariums and zoos.

The ice sculpture is the first thing you'll see on the Aquarium's plaza, right by the IMAX Theatre

See the penguin family ice sculpture on the Aquarium’s front plaza for free but come into the Aquarium and see if you can find Jahleel and his parents among the 87 penguins of three different species that make the huge penguin pool their home. The Aquarium is celebrating Penguinology – Explore the Secret World of Penguins, and young visitors get a cool guide with many unusual facts about these beloved birds.

The artist behind this year's family of penguins is Don Chapelle, ice sculptor extraordinaire and one of the principal First Night ice sculptors for many years.

An icy penguin is the perfect way to celebrate winter!

Ice sculptures have been a fun New Year's tradition at the Aquarium for several years now. See some of the previous icy marine animals:

• A family of fur seals with the addition of Kitovi to welcome 2014
• Flaherty the fur seal pup for New Year's 2013
• Rambunctious pair of sea lions to celebrate the coming year of 2012
• Rockhopper penguins in ice to welcome 2011

The massive sea turtle stranding season continues to pique the interest of folks around the country.

A rescued sea turtle awaits its entrance exam

Here are a couple national news stories that you may have missed.

• Watch NBC Nightly News
• Watch CBS Evening News
• Read New York Times

For the latest from the front lines of sea turtle rehabilitation, follow the Rescue Blog.

1. Seadragons

Weedy seadragons and their cousins, the leafy seadragons, are Australia natives and masters of camouflage.

2. Sea turtles

There are three species in the Giant Ocean Tank: Kemp's ridley, loggerhead and green sea turtles. Loggerhead (foreground) and green (Myrtle in the background) here, bonus if you get all three in one picture!

 3. Giant Pacific octopus

Her name is Elvira and she's the most marveled-at resident of the Northern Waters gallery. Especially when she does stuff like this.

These blubbery athletes are the first animals you'll see on the Aquarium's Front Plaza. Don't miss a training session for a chance to see their smarts on display.

5. Penguins

More than 80 birds, three species and a whole lot of squawking happening in the Penguin Exhibit

6. Sea lions

These two. So much spunk.

Brainless blobs that happen to be incredibly photogenic

8. Cownose rays

So many smiles in The Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank

9. Mandarinfish

Even as tropical fish go, this guy is a show stopper.

 10. Poison Dart Frogs

Teensy animals can be eye-catching, too—if you know where to look. Look for these vibrant amphibians in the Amazon Rainforest exhibits.

And there you have it, 10 of the most eye-catching animals you'll find at the Aquarium. Did your favorite animal make the list? Go ahead and comment if you have another suggestion! We'd love to hear which animals tickle your fancy. Need a refresher? Plan a visit! Here are some tips for planning your trip during the upcoming holiday school vacation period.

Every month our Volunteer office sorts through piles of nominations from supervisors and honors one of our volunteers for their truly stupendous efforts. Meet our latest Volunteer of the Month.

At the New England Aquarium, we have a lot of popular, charismatic animals that visitors flock to. We also have many incredible and understated animals that often go unnoticed. This month we’re awarding a Visitor Education volunteer who increases the impact of all of the animals in our exhibits by bringing attention to animals that otherwise might be overlooked by visitors!

Congratulations to Christine Van Gemert!

Here’s what her supervisor, Sam Herman had to say:

 Christine has been a volunteer for Visitor Education for 2 years. During that time she’s really made her mark on Fridays. She is a positive force both on and off the floor. I look forward to working with her as well as chatting with her behind the scenes. She knows her areas of growth and actively steps up to work on them. Beyond just the normal job duties, she also adds to floor interpretation. She’s brought in multiple models for use both at the Edge of the Sea touch tank and at gallery carts. She loves to interpret less-popular animals (ask her about parrotfish!) and really engages well with our visitors. Her calm demeanor works well in peaking our visitors’ curiosity and inspiring them to become ocean stewards once they leave the Aquarium. Fridays are lucky to have her!

So next time you’re at the Aquarium on A Friday, seek her out to learn something new!

Cape Cod is in the midst of an unprecedented sea turtle stranding season. This media release pertains to the transport of turtles by the US Coast Guard.  See more pictures of sea turtle rescue season in our Animal Care Facility on the Rescue Blog.

To disperse a seeming tidal wave of stranded sea turtles washing up on Cape Cod, the New England Aquarium arranged for 243 re-warmed Kemp’s Ridley and green sea turtles to be flown  to Florida and North Carolina Tuesday.

A rescued Kemp's ridley sea turtle in treatment at the Aquarium's Animal Care Center in Quincy, Mass.

Before dawn, 193 critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles were netted from the pools of the Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, MA, loaded into padded boxes and transported to Otis Air National Guard Base on Cape Cod where a Coast Guard plane transported the 3-10 pound, black shelled turtles to Orlando where they were distributed to seven marine animal rehab facilities in north and central Florida. At mid-morning, 50 Kemp’s and green sea turtles were also pulled and driven to suburban Norwood Airport where a private pilot flew them to North Carolina for distribution to the aquariums there. These turtles will spend at least a couple of months in the various rehab settings before being released back into  the ocean.

The flights temporarily freed up critical tank space at the Aquarium’s hospital for more turtles that have been rescued and have been waiting at the Massachusetts Audubon Sanctuary at Wellfleet Bay. Within two hours of the second flight departing Massachusetts, 50 more sea turtles were transferred to the sea turtle hospital from the Outer Cape nature center. The turtles remaining at the Audubon sanctuary have been under the care of an Aquarium veterinarian on site. After a week of nearly a hundred turtles washing up daily, Tuesday’s mild weather gave rescuers a break as just a few live animals were found.

Here's a quick look at a rescued sea turtle's journey to the Aquarium's Animal Care Center.




Only three weeks into the eight week long sea turtle stranding season, 2014 has already smashed  prior records into oblivion. Since November 3, Mass Audubon had recovered 976 live and dead sea turtles. Just over 600 of those turtles arrived alive. Including today’s flights, 328 turtles have been re-warmed, stabilized and  transported to rehab facilities in Georgia, North and South Carolina,  Florida, Pennsylvania and  Massachusetts. 180 turtles are in residence at the Quincy sea turtle hospital as of Tuesday night and about 100 turtles remain in Wellfleet. The previous record for live turtles treated during a season was 242, and the average over the past decade was about 90! There are 4-5 weeks remaining in the stranding season, and regional sea turtle biologists are in disbelief and amazement at the number of cold-stunned juvenile sea turtles that have been recovered and possibly remain in Cape Cod Bay.

The operational challenges have been immense for both the Aquarium and Mass Audubon, but the outpouring of support and help from trained volunteers to other marine rehab organizations to NOAA has been tremendous.

A rescued sea turtle is prepared for its intake exam at the Aquarium's Animal Care Center in Quincy, MA

This historic and daunting stranding event has a possible silver lining. If these endangered turtles did not strand, they would die, but also the unprecedented number is a probable indicator that high percentages of the hatchling classes over the last two to five years have survived, and that should aid in the slow recovery of the most endangered sea turtle population in the world.

The weather recipe for a mass stranding of sea turtles on Cape Cod starts with chilling water temperatures to 50 degrees, add steady northwest winds over a couple of days and then whisk in wind speeds in excess of 20 miles per hour, creating wave heights that can carry the largely inert, endangered marine reptiles ashore. This past weekend, the weather chef got carried away as forty-five live sea turtles were rescued on the beaches of six Cape Cod Bay towns from Dennis to Truro.

A recent arrival to the Aquarium's sea turtle rescue hospital

On Saturday, seventeen critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles were rescued by the dedicated staff and volunteers of Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary and were then transported to the New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, MA, for life saving re-warming and treatment of other medical problems. On Sunday, twenty-eight more live and lucky sea turtles were rescued on the Cape. That number was the highest for a single day since 1999.

When the turtles first arrive they are given subcutaneous fluid depending on what their bloodwork shows.

Instinctively, we know that marine animal strandings are an undesirable and life threatening event, particularly for dolphins, pilot whales and large whales. Ironically, on Cape Cod in November, stranding for a sea turtle is its only life saving option. Sea turtles do not intentionally strand, but with body temperatures in the low 50’s and high 40’s, these sea turtles no longer have the ability to migrate south. If they fail to wash up, they will eventually die from hypothermia as water temperatures drop into the 30’s and low 40’s in late November and December.

A picture from Mass Audubon's Facebook page documenting their record day of intake

Strangely enough, the cutting, northwest winds of late autumn that cruelly remind New Englanders of the oncoming winter are potentially life-saving for sea turtles. Monday’s warming weather with the wind switching from the southwest with heavy gusts in excess of 40 miles per hour is dangerous for the remaining, floating sea turtles as it could blow many of them out of Cape Cod Bay into the open ocean. Tuesday and Wednesday are more favorable for the sea turtles as northwest winds are predicted to resume as we cool down again.

Volunteers with Mass Audubon walk blustery Cape Cod beaches like this one looking for stranded sea turtles

Over 20 years, the New England Aquarium and Mass Audubon have rescued, rehabilitated and released more than 1000 endangered and threatened sea turtles.

Head over to the Rescue Blog for more about sea turtle stranding:

• Meet the first arrivals of the 2014 season
• See some of the sea turtle hospital upgrades that happened during the summer
• Here's a very cool sea turtle that's helping us understand more about these oceanic animals
• That time we helped rescue a giant leatherback sea turtle
• Find out why we do what we do for endangered sea turtles

Barton Seaver

Barton Seaver, Esquire magazine’s 2009 Chef of the Year, National Geographic Oceans Fellow and author of For Cod and Country cookbook, is the Sustainability Fellow at the New England Aquarium—a role that lets him share ways families can bring sustainable seafood to the dinner table. 

Read Part 1 for more on the why canned seafood should be considered for your next meal. In Part 2 of this series, he offers some ideas on how a simple can of seafood can be ocean-friendly, sustainable and tasty! 

While fresh seafood can be a bit of a hit-or-miss in terms of the quality available, canned seafood is always consistent. Much of the time the fish are processed within hours of being caught, locking in freshness and quality. And the health benefits of canned seafood are equal to those of fresh seafood. In fact, I would say they are greater in that having a consistent go-to source of fish encourages increased consumption of this heart-healthy food. Having such convenient and cost-effective protein available at a moment’s notice enables us to reduce our consumption of other less healthy proteins. After a long day of work with little time to plan, shop for, and prepare a meal, there's nothing more welcoming than creating a protein and omega-3 packed meal made from pantry staples to sustain you and your family.

Sustainably-harvested and ocean-friendly salmon can be canned and enjoyed

When shopping for canned seafood you will find a huge variety of options. Keep in mind that while canned species tend towards environmentally-friendly options, sustainability should still be considered. Educating yourself with the sustainability guidelines from the New England Aquarium will help to clarify your decisions. Other factors to consider are products that are packaged in BPA-free containers. (BPA is a plastic liner within cans that is considered a health risk.) Also, look for products labeled low sodium—you can always add a little seasoning such as fresh herbs and spices to accentuate flavor.

When it comes to oil-pack vs. water-pack, the choice is up to you. I prefer to use oil pack as I find that the oil takes on the rich flavor of the seafood and becomes a delicious addition to the final dish. When using water-packed seafood, more often than not there is no use for the water and so it, and the flavor it has absorbed, goes down the drain.

Pink salmon cakes | Photo courtesy Barton Seaver

While canned products are traditionally maligned as convenience food and not fit for fine cooking, I respectfully disagree with this interpretation. Canned pink salmon makes for excellent salmon cakes when mixed with fresh herbs and whole grain mustard. I prefer to eat pink salmon with the bones and skin as they offer the additional benefit of high calcium. The all-too-familiar canned tuna gets a new turn in the spotlight when paired with a mayonnaise spiked with the delicious oil from the can and the enticing flavors of nutmeg and celery. Smoked mussels make for a fine New England-style chowder, chunky with potatoes and milky broth. The convenience is easy enough to make this a new snow-day lunchtime favorite. Sardines are once again a welcome addition to the table when accentuated with the crunch of thin shaved fennel and radishes for a healthy and easy lunch. And anchovies disappear into a rush of compliments as your family devours a pasta sauce rich in flavor and omega-3s.

Photo: Katie Stoops via National Geographic

Choosing and preparing sustainable seafood does not have to be as mysterious as the deep, wine-dark sea. Some of the most delicious options for quick, easy, and healthy meals may already be in your pantry. So the next time you are in a pinch and need a quick meal, remember to think inside the can.

THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST DISCOUNTS IN TOWN! IT WILL BE FULLY ACTIVE TOMORROW!

Our members have some great perks in and around the Aquarium—discounts at the Gift Shop, Whale Watch and IMAX theatre, express admission and member-exclusive events.

Sometimes we connect our members with special discounts to the theater, too!

New England Aquarium members can receive 30%-off tickets to Irving Berlin's White Christmas! Visit citicenter.org/merry and enter code HOLIDAYS to buy your discounted tickets.

This discount applies to select tickets and performances (12/16 7:30p, 12/17 7:30p, 12/18 7:30p, 12/19 8:00p, 12/21 6:30p, 12/23 7:30p, 12/24 2:00p, 12/28 6:30p) while supplies last.

Barton Seaver

Barton Seaver, Esquire magazine’s 2009 Chef of the Year, National Geographic Oceans Fellow and author of For Cod and Country cookbook, is the Sustainability Fellow at the New England Aquarium. In this role, he periodically discusses ways families can bring sustainable seafood to the dinner table. 

In Part 1 of this series of posts, he shares a surprising way that families can create a quick, healthy, sustainable, ocean-friendly meal.

As Sustainability Fellow at the Aquarium, I am often asked “What should be for dinner?” Unfortunately the answer is not always so easy. Sustainable seafood is a complicated topic, one that depends on myriad variables, making a trip to the seafood counter feel like one of those SAT questions about two trains leaving the station at different times. Factor in the cost of fresh seafood per pound and it’s understandable why some households are reluctant to experiment with cooking seafood dishes or adding them to their regular routine.

However, sometimes the best options are not in the fresh case. Fresh seafood has seasons of availability, there are price fluctuations, there are times when what’s in the case just doesn’t inspire! The unpredictable nature of our busy lives can also make it difficult to plan a meal with highly perishable fresh seafood. Luckily there are other aisles in which to look for the delicious bounty of the sea.

Enter the humble can.

Canned fish. Find it in your grocery store! | Photo: Mk2010 via Wikimedia Commons

Canned seafood represents some of the best values in any aisle of the grocery store and also some of the most delicious ingredients to be found anywhere. Canned products offer a number of virtues that benefit your wallet, your taste buds and our oceans. A quick inventory of commonly canned species reveals a who’s-who of the top of the sustainability green list—sardines, mussels, clams, oysters, crab, herring, mackerel, pink and sockeye salmons, and yes, even some species of tuna.

There are other major benefits to eating canned seafood, the first of which is that it is accessible to everyone, everywhere. Even gas stations often carry a couple options making this affordable protein the ultimate convenience food. The extended shelf life continues that convenience factor all the way from the time of purchase until the moment your family sits to dinner.

Stay tuned to part two of this series for some ideas on how a simple can of seafood can be ocean-friendly, sustainable and tasty! Learn more about the Aquarium's Sustainable Seafood Programs by exploring our ocean-friendly seafood guide or treating yourself to a Celebrate Seafood dinner event.

November is the beginning of the sea turtle stranding season on Cape Cod, and this weekend nine critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles washed up on Outer Cape beaches, almost all in Eastham. The 4-9-pound black-shelled turtles were rescued by the dedicated staff and volunteers from the Massachusetts Audubon Sanctuary at Wellfleet Bay. The turtles were then transported to the New England’s Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, MA.

See more pictures of these first turtles to arrive at the sea turtle hospital on the Rescue Blog!

An endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle covered in algae is evaluated at in-take at the New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, MA. The turtle stranded in Eastham on Cape Cod over the weekend due to prolonged hypothermia.

Most of the lethargic turtles were covered with accumulated algae from lack of activity due to low body temperatures in the mid-50’s. Since sea turtle are reptiles and cold-blooded, they assume the water temperature around them. Their preferred body temperature is in the 70’s, and Aquarium biologists and veterinarians will slowly re-warm the turtles about 5 degrees per day over the next three days.

Once re-warmed, many of the turtles will have other medical problems due to the slow chilling and minimal eating over the last several weeks. Malnutrition, pneumonia, blood disorders and orthopedic issues are all common problems that require prolonged rehab of anywhere from 3 to 10 months. 85 to 90% of the live rescued turtle survive and are released back into the wild, usually in the warm waters off of Florida or Georgia over the winter.

A slowly re-warming sea turtle that stranded on Cape Cod over the weekend due to hypothermia gets a little physical therapy with a supervised swim at New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy.

Kemp’s ridleys are the most endangered sea turtle in the world. As juveniles, they migrate annually to the waters off of Cape Cod to feed on crabs. Many of the young animals end up in Cape Cod Bay on the north side of this huge, backward L shaped peninsula. Many of the young animals are unable to figure out the tricky navigation out of the bay and slowly become hypothermic as sea temperatures slowly decline during the autumn. Wave activity churned up by northwest winds washes the inert turtles ashore.

In an average year, 90 to 100 sea turtles of three different species will strand on Cape Cod and the Islands due to cold stunning. The record was 242 in 2012. So far, this year 11 Kemp’s ridleys have stranded with the first arriving from Martha’s Vineyard November 3. The season could last until mid-December depending on weather.

Over 20 years, the New England Aquarium and Mass Audubon at Wellfleet Bay have rescued, rehabilitated and released more than 1000 endangered and threatened sea turtles.

If someone finds a turtle, please call Mass Audubon at Wellfleet Bay at 508-349-2615.

Every month our Volunteer office sorts through piles of nominations from supervisors and honors one of our volunteers for their truly stupendous efforts. Meet our latest Volunteer of the Month.

Asking one day per week for six months of our volunteers is asking an incredible commitment and is part of the reason we allow individuals to serve in just one position at a time. With our new program, the live blue™ Service Initiative, volunteers who want to go the extra mile can sign up for flexible opportunities, or also take on a leadership role on top of their traditional position.

October’s Volunteer of the Month is a live blue™ Service Leader in addition to being a leader amongst the Marine Mammals volunteers.  Please join us in congratulating Meaghan Sorce, an incredible volunteer leader.

Meaghan Sorce

Here’s what Kim Cummings and the other Marine Mammal Trainers had to say:

I, along with the other Marine Mammal Trainers, nominate Meaghan Sorce as September’s volunteer of the month. Even though Meaghan has been with our team for under a year she has taken the volunteer position to a whole new level. Her dedication, hard work, and reliability make her the perfect volunteer. Not only does Meaghan volunteer as a full day mammals volunteer she also spends her morning diving the fur seal exhibit going that extra mile to ensure the animal’s habitat is clean. 

She never complains regardless of what she is tasked to do and always has a smile on her face. The volunteers are expected to complete specific tasks throughout the day. We rely on them for the day to run smoothly. They help with diet preparation, vitamins, exhibit maintenance, enrichment, training sessions, cleaning and educational talks. Meaghan excels at all of these tasks, especially visitor interaction. She delivers wonderful public presentations, gearing her talk towards appropriate ages present. She spends quality time with guests answering questions and giving them details about the animals.

Meaghan has an amazing attitude. She never complains and always does more than she is asked to. There is a list of extra tasks to be done if you have spare time. Every Friday Meaghan knocks at least half of those tasks off the list. She always volunteers to go out into the public area and talk during animal enrichment even if she is not assigned to. She will fill her day with tasks that truly benefit the animals, staff and guests at the aquarium.  I cannot imagine a more deserving person for this honor.

Join us in thanking Meaghan for her work with the mammals and with volunteers in the field!
Learn more about how to sign up for the live blue™ Service Initiative.

Goosefish, with a snaggletooth maw that can engulf prey whole

Chambered nautilus, hovers through dark waters with enormous eyes and a tangle of tentacles

Green anaconda, 13 feet of slithering strength and beauty. 'Nuf said.

Lionfish, an absolutely frightening invader of Caribbean reefs with a mane of venomous fins and no fear

Ocillated frogfish, pretends to be coral all day long and then you realize it's a fish

Green moray eel, with mucus-covered skin in just the right shade of witch and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth

Comb jellies. Or brainless, blobby alien ghosts.

The Halloween lobster lives! Nicknamed Pinchy, this American lobster arrived around Halloween several years ago with a genetic mutation that makes every day Halloween

Go blue on Black Friday! Skip the big box stores this weekend and take advantage of our special discount: $3 off up to four tickets for admission to the Aquarium. This limited-time offer expires on Sunday, November 30, 2014.

Aquarium researchers have been toiling for more than 30 years studying the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale. Our blog followers know the right whale team has gone to great lengths advocating for protection for these vulnerable behemoths through changes in shipping regulations and investigating entanglements in fishing gear.

Right whale sponsorships (great holiday gift, just sayin), in part, help support this critical research.

Now more people know about the plight of these marine mammals—and the efforts of our passionate researchers—thanks to a recent cover story in The Christian Science Monitor weekly magazine.

Click here for this terrific long read.


And after you've read all about the amazing work of our team in the field and cyberspace and beyond, you can support their efforts by sponsoring a right whale! To sponsor a right whale, choose one of the six whales and the level of your sponsorship on the online sponsorship form. Anyone—children, parents, community organizations, school classes or clubs—can sponsor a whale. Thank you for your support!

Piper is one of the whales you can sponsor through this program. She's a mom.

The New England Aquarium's President and CEO Nigella Hillgarth published an opinion piece in Saturday's Boston Globe about bi-partisan efforts to protect huge swaths of ocean habitat. These exciting designations bring to mind the Aquarium's efforts to protect pristine reefs in Kiribati's Phoenix Islands.

Read the full article in The Boston Globe here. Here's an excerpt:

President Obama’s recent designation of marine protection to vast, new areas of the central Pacific Ocean builds directly off of prior national monument designations of his predecessor, George W. Bush. This rare, bipartisan support for such conservation policies in acrimonious political times reflects the building momentum to protect large expanses of ocean across the globe. Surprisingly, the recent decade-long burst of designating large marine-protected areas around the world has some of its principal roots in Boston.

US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE VIA AP/FILE

Learn more about the Aquarium's conservation efforts in the Phoenix Islands:

• Here's a little background about the Phoenix Island Protected Area (PIPA)
• Read about the latest scientific expedition to the region on the blogs
• Learn why scientists are studying whaling logs from this region from the 1800's 
• Get to know different tuna species and various fishing practices in the Phoenix Islands
• Here's a link to the Phoenix Islands' website
• Fun Fact: The Phoenix Islands Protected Area is a UNESCO World Heritage site

#DucksLovePenguins
We're giving your family a chance to win free tickets to cruise through Boston on a world-famous Boston Duck Tour and explore the New England Aquarium. It's a great trip waiting to happen, because Duck Tours depart from the Aquarium daily … and you could be on board.

So whip out your smartphones, open Instagram and start posting pics of ducks and Duck Tours for your chance to win combo tickets to go on a Boston Duck Tour and visit the Aquarium!


How to Enter

• Step 1: Find a Boston Duck Tour vehicle or a duck (think: quack! quack!).
• Step 2: Take a great Instagram picture.
• Step 3: Post it with the hashtag: #DucksLovePenguins and be sure to tag @newenglandaquarium and @bostonducktours
• Step 4: Repeat for more chances to win!

Contest Details
Starts: Now!
Ends: Wednesday, 10/22
Prize: A family four-pack of combo tickets to take a Boston Duck Tour and visit the New England Aquarium. Two (2) family four-packs will be awarded over the week of the contest.
Stay Connected
Follow @newenglandaquarium and @bostonducktours on Instagram for more updates and to see entries being reposted.

This is your chance to see Boston by land and water, and visit your favorite penguins, sharks, sea turtles and sea lions without paying a dime. We'll be watching Instagram for winners. The ball's in your court now, you lucky ducks!

After a day-long, nearly 500-mile long drive from the New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, Mass., to Maryland’s Eastern Shore, three endangered sea turtles that had been rescued on Cape Cod for a variety of reasons were released into the warm surf of Ocean City, Maryland. These sea turtles received a significant head start on their usual autumn migration southward as ocean temperatures off of Cape Cod are a bracing 58 degrees while the mid-Atlantic waters are a sea turtle friendly 71 degrees.

A loggerhead sea turtle rehabilitated by Boston ‘s New England Aquarium is released by National Aquarium intern, Melissa Bittner, off of Ocean City, MD, Tuesday. The 30 pound sea turtle had been rescued from a fishing net off of Cape Cod in September, was treated at the New England Aquarium’s sea turtle hospital in Quincy, MA and then driven nearly 500 miles south to the much warmer and more sea turtle friendly waters of Maryland. Photo: National Aquarium in Baltimore

The three turtles included a 30 pound loggerhead sea turtle that had been recovered from a gill net near the elbow of Cape Cod in Chatham in September. Two smaller Kemp’s ridley sea turtles, the world’s most endangered sea turtle species, were also released. That included the smallest turtle in the group that had stranded this past September 10 in Brewster MA, an area with tricky tides. Summer time sea turtle strandings usually are associated with underlying medical issues, but to the surprise of the New England Aquarium rescue biologists and veterinarians, this young turtle was fine and probably stranded due to inexperience with large tides and strong local currents.

The last Kemp’s ridley, a 12-pounder named Golden Crisp,  had been in rehab for nearly 11 months. It had stranded last November in Wellfleet, Mass., during the annual late autumn sea turtle stranding event on Cape Cod due to hypothermia for those turtles that have failed to migrate. After recovering from the cold stunning, Golden Crisp was slow to recover from some persistent lung and blood infections. It was the last sea turtle from the 2013 cold stunning season in the New England Aquarium’s suburban Boston rescue facility.

More than 80 other endangered and sea turtles from last year’s hypothermia event have either been released or transferred to other turtle rehab facilities. That gives the Aquarium’s marine animal rescue team about a month to rest and to get prepared for the start of the 2014 sea turtle stranding season on Cape Cod in early November.

Learn about other sea turtle releases this year: 

• Three endangered sea turtles released from Cape Cod in August
• That time Kaboom and her tank mates were released of Assateague Island
• Several large loggerhead sea turtles were also released off Assateague earlier in June
• See before and after photos of rescued turtles before they were released this summer
• An epic sea turtle release on Earth Day involved a road trip to Florida 
• And see where Nate the Great, released in 2013, is today thanks to his transponder