We started back where they care for the rescued sea turtles, manatees and dolphins.  SeaWorld parks have helped animals in need — ill, injured, orphaned and abandoned — for more than four decades.  Nearly 20,000 animals have been rescued by the park’s animal experts including whales, dolphins, seals, sea lions, manatees, sea turtles and birds. This is the equivalent of helping one animal a day — every day — for 45 years. The majority of these animals are successfully treated by SeaWorld veterinarians, rehabilitated and returned to the wild. In a normal year SeaWorld will care for 13-30 rescued SeaTurtles. In 2010 they have already rescued 368 sea turtles and they have released 256! That is about 25 times more work and they have added no staff! The huge increase is due to both the January cold snap and the oil spill. We even got to see the orphaned manatee but we weren’t allowed to take pictures.

Our next stop was Pacific Point Preserve where park guests can feed the seals and sea lions. Then we headed to the much anticipated stop at an educational building that houses Magellanic Penguins! These penguins are used as ambassadors for SeaWorld because they can withstand temperatures in the 60’s, unlike most other penguin species. Aaron and I even got to pet Miss Mario the penguin!!

Next stop was dinner at the Sharks Underwater Grill. It was very cool eating dinner right next to the shark tank! We were served a Ceasar Salad, an appetizer platter with stuffed mushrooms, shrimp cocktail and bruschetta and this was followed by a dessert platter with chocolate cake filled with chocolate cake and covered in chocolate ganache, white chocolate mousse in a dark chocolate cage and fried tortillas dipped in chocolate and covered in coconut whipped cream. Needless to say the meal was yummy.

After eating all that food we were free to explore the park on our own, and encouraged to see the special summer nighttime shows. Our first stop was Manta! I rode this coaster last October and I couldn’t wait to introduce Aaron to it. Well Aaron’s tummy was bothering him so I got really brave and rode it alone! I still love this coaster but it wasn’t nearly as fun as it was riding it with Corrin, Toni, Dave and Laurie last fall. Next we walked around and checked out some of the animal exhibits before heading to Wild Arctic. After that we got in line for Shamu Rocks. This show was the whole reason Aaron wanted to go to SeaWorld and after waiting an hour in line to say it…we were both disappointed. The music is great but we both agree that the show was boring and didn’t live up to our expectations. I’m sure some of that has to do with the fact that the trainers no longer go in the water with the orcas thus leaving the show with just some dancers, an electric guitar player and some killer whales that wave at the crowd a lot.

After the show we decided to head back to our car. We had hoped to see the fireworks but we would have had to wait around  over a half hour for them to begin and we had an almost 2 hour drive ahead of us. All-in-all we had a great day at SeaWorld and I still can’t wait to take my entire family on Manta!

Disclosure: We were guests of SeaWorld Orlando for the day. No cash was exchanged for this post all opinions are 100% mine.

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The Fund’s board of directors approved the 2010 grants to 95 wildlife protection projects including rescue and rehabilitation efforts of endangered manatees and sea turtles, protection of critical habitats such as the Florida Keys, studies of declining shark populations and education programs that inspire people to care for at-risk wildlife.

“The challenges and pressures facing wildlife and entire ecosystems are greater than ever,” said Brad Andrews, president and executive director of the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund and chief zoological officer for SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. “We identify projects with the greatest potential to positively impact conservation so that every dollar we grant works as hard as possible to protect the animals.”

Just a few of the many projects and organizations supported in 2010 include:

Preserving the Florida KeysThe Florida Keys are known for sunshine and good times, but the area is also a vital ecological region suffering from environmental degradation. The Florida Keys Wildlife Rescue facility rescues and rehabilitates injured wildlife and educates the public on the importance of keeping the environment safe and clean for present and future generations.

San Diego Turtle and Tortoise SocietyThe San Diego Turtle and Tortoise Society is the only non-profit organization in San Diego that rescues turtles and tortoises of any species. They also provide medical care, foster care and permanent home placements. The Fund’s support will help with medical care requirements of the California Desert Tortoise and education of the public concerning the proper care of the tortoise as well as how to help protect species native to California.

Safe Guarding Sea Turtle Nesting SitesCameroon Sea Turtle Society is protecting newly identified green and leatherback turtle nesting sites along the Wole beach in the Republic of Cameroon. This is an important nesting ground for sea turtles threatened by ship building, toxic waste and egg poachers. The Society’s efforts include nesting site clean-ups, creating safe zones that would limit access and educating egg poachers in other income–generating trades.

Bald Eagle Rescue and RehabilitationFlorida supports one of the largest breeding populations of bald eagles in the continental United States. The Audubon Center for Birds of Prey is the leading raptor rehabilitation facility in the region and works to protect bald eagles and their habitat through its rehabilitation program, nest monitoring program, and educational programs that reach more than 35,000 people annually.

Sand Tiger Shark Conservation Due to their unfortunate reputation as a “man-eater”, sharks are often not thought of when the public considers wildlife conservation. The Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries is currently doing a study on the decline of the sand tiger shark population along the east coast of the United States. This information will be integrated into the development of the Coastal Sharks Interstate Fishery Management Plan by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to further the conservation of this threatened species.

Conserving the West African ManateeIn Africa, the lack of basic knowledge about West African manatees has been a great hindrance to the long-term conservation of the species. The Wildlife Trust is working to create a unified network of African researchers in countries of the animal’s range to collect collaborative research on the endangered species.

Save the ElephantsThe Mobile Education and Monitoring Unit is a new project that will double the outreach and education capabilities of the Save the Elephants Education Program in Samburu, northern Kenya. The work being done there includes long-term elephant monitoring and conducting mammal census in the Samburu and Buffalo Springs Reserves.

For more information on the Fund, please visit www.swbg-conservationfund.org.

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