Conservation
Manatee Release!
Today we celebrated an exciting milestone as Luca and Giovanni were successfully released back into the wild. The two manatees arrived at our facility on September 25, 2025, from SeaWorld Orlando for continued care and rehabilitation. Giovanni, a naturally orphaned calf rescued from Vaca Key on August 7, 2024, weighed 141 pounds when he entered…
Read MoreMeet Luca!
This week, we concluded our naming contest for our new male manatee! After narrowing down the names to the two most popular and suggested, we had the general public vote on their favorite name. After 2 weeks of voting, the winning name is Luca! If you’d like to support Luca and Giovanni, please consider donating…
Read MoreWelcome our new manatees!
In December we received two new manatees into our facility for rehabilitation. Cannoli, a coldstunned orphan from the Sanibel – San Carlos Bay area, and Alpine, a cold-stunned orphan from the Crystal River area. Both were rescued by Zoo Tampa. Cannoli and Alpine will remain here at Aquarium Encounters until they are at a healthy…
Read MoreNew Exhibit – Mangrove Terrapins!
Come check out the newest residents of Aquarium Encounters, the Mangrove Terrapins! This subspecies of the Diamondback Terrapin is found almost exclusively in the Florida Keys. Unlike their freshwater cousins, these animals inhabit salt and brackish water. Terrapins also typically spend more time on land than freshwater turtles so this exhibit has plenty of space…
Read MoreReef Renewal – Anchor Installation
Divers from Dynasty Marine, Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters, R3EACH and Reef Renewal USA in partnership with the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) recently worked with Ken Nedimyer to install anchors for a brand new coral nursery. Nedimyer, founder of the Coral Restoration Foundation, is now the Director of Reef Renewal International working to…
Read MoreNew Year Resolutions
As we are 15 days into the new year, we hope 2019 is starting off great for everyone! Our aquarium and staff is having a great 2019 so far. We wanted to share some of our new years resolutions with you all! Feel free to share yours too and tag us in them on Facebook…
Read MoreHurricane Irma – One Year Later
After reopening December 15th, 2017 from hurricane Irma our aquarium and staff had a great year in 2018! We participated and assisted in three manatee rescues, successfully certified kids in our NAUI summer camp program, reached the half way point on our Great Hammerhead Project fundraising, and educated thousands of guests on marine life and…
Read MoreRocking Success!
Thank you so much to everyone who came out to support our first ever fundraiser concert at the aquarium! Our Rockerama was a rocking success and we could not have pulled it off without all of your support. The event featured live music from local musicians, silent auction items from local businesses and a 50/50…
Read MoreOut reach
Aquarium Encounters has been doing a lot of work out of the “office” lately! Our staff has been fortunate enough to be invited to a few outreach programs dedicated on educating children on science and marine life. Our main goal at the aquarium is education, through awareness, and we love sharing our knowledge of our…
Read MoreR3EACH – update
In the past few months we have been privileged to be a part of a manatee rescue, and a manatee transport. Both of these events have been an amazing start to what we are looking to accomplish with our nonprofit organization. The main goals of R3EACH are to help our local species of marine life…
Read MoreShark Bait OoHaHa!
July was all about sharks! Even though July 14th was Shark Awareness Day, and July 22nd-29th was Shark Week, the conversation does not end there. These amazing apex predators are often feared by humans, but in reality, we have the largest impact on their populations. Research shows you are more likely to get hit by…
Read MoreRecycle today for a better tomorrow!
The first week of July was Clean beaches week, but here at Aquarium Encounters , we believe every day should be Clean Beaches day! Aquarium Encounters is always trying to do our part when it comes to recycling and staying green; on land at the beach, at the aquarium, or on our days off on the…
Read MoreThe Great Hammerhead Project – Be In The Know!
The great hammerhead shark is currently on the red list (endangered) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Overfishing, shark finning, and the loss of critical food resources are some suspected causes for their decline. Depriving future generations of such an iconic species would be tragic. Learn more at www.greathammerheadstudy.org Do you know about our…
Read MorePlan your End of Year School Field Trip at the Aquarium!
Looking for an exciting end of year adventure for your Child’s School Field Trip? At Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters, we love welcoming school groups at our interactive aquarium in the heart of the Florida Keys.
Read MoreClose Encounters with Ben Daughtry
The Journey to create Aquarium Encounters As a local Marathon business, we are proud of our homegrown roots. Aquarium Encounters began as a dream in our founder, Ben Daughtry’s mind, almost 20 years ago. After an exciting trip to an interactive aquarium in Curaçao in 1996, Ben imagined how great it would be to have a…
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