Blog

How many hairs do you have on your head? Most humans have about 100,000, give or take a few. But sea otters have anywhere between 500,000 and 1,000,000 hairs per square inch of skin—meaning that one inch of a sea otter’s fur has between five and 10 times the number of hairs you have on your entire head!

The Clean Seas Research Program at the Seattle Aquarium is thrilled to announce the start of environmental testing and our role as scientists and one of two testing sites for The TOM FORD Plastic Innovation Prize powered by Lonely Whale.

Kids of all ages love visiting the Aquarium to see the animals—but did you know some of them also support the Aquarium’s mission on their own time? Teens in our Youth Ocean Advocates (YOA) program, open to students in grades 9–12, volunteer for a variety of marine conservation and advocacy activities during the school year or over the summer. 

From youth engagement to ocean policy advocacy, the Seattle Aquarium is working to advance climate solutions to avert further ocean acidification and ocean warming and build the resilience of marine ecosystems and coastal communities. Climate change is a multifaceted challenge, with impacts at local, state, national and global scales.

Here, Interpretation Coordinator Nicole Killebrew and Senior Ocean Policy Manager Nora Nickum discuss the challenges of climate change, potential policy solutions and opportunities for hope. 

In a recent series of blog posts, we described what it’s like to care for the 12,000+ animals that live at the Aquarium and how we aim to provide the best lives possible for them. This post is devoted to the final stage: end-of life care and, when necessary, euthanasia—which means producing a humane death that is rapid, avoids pain and minimizes any distress. While many of the animals in our care die of natural causes, euthanasia is a critical and compassionate element of the care we provide. No animal can live forever, and we want the animals in our care to pass as peacefully as possible when it’s time.

There’s always something interesting going on—from new animals to new habitats and more―and we’re excited to share all the latest news.

Signing in “pro” on key environmental bills, delivering virtual testimony, sharing opportunities to take action with the Washington community, and collaborating with legislators as well as partners across the state—the Seattle Aquarium spent the 60-day state legislative session working hard to advance ocean health priorities. And many of you joined us in speaking up! Read on for highlights from the session and a preview of future efforts.

“I deeply feel the urgency because scientifically, I know full well the impacts of the change we’re seeing now and in the future. This is our window of opportunity.” —Lisa Graumlich, Ph.D. 

“When people really care about these creatures and the ecosystem, things will change in a positive way.” ―Dr. Zhenyu Tian

Since 2004, the Seattle Aquarium has honored the work of extraordinary people with these prestigious awards that celebrate their accomplishments. Our annual Ocean Conservation Honors dinner raises the visibility of ocean conservation, highlighting and celebrating the honoree’s aspirations and impact, and sharing the passion for the work and the difference our actions make on behalf of ocean health.

This year, in the interest of health and safety, we’ll be celebrating our honorees through a series of blog posts with hope that we can resume our traditional dinner next year.

We are sad to announce the passing of Adaa, the male northern sea otter under our care, from cancer. The disease was diagnosed in mid-February and considered terminal. Adaa was treated with medications to manage his symptoms and provide him with a good quality of life for the time he had left. The staff had hoped this would give him several weeks, but his condition recently deteriorated and he was humanely euthanized on Sunday, February 27.

Meet our adolescent lumpsuckers, direct from Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco. These eight golf ball-shaped, cold-water fish have been chilling out (literally!) behind the scenes in a chilled system at the Aquarium until our incoming water was cold enough for them. Now you can find them in the eelgrass area of the Puget Sound Fish habitat, alongside the sailfin sculpin and high cockscomb. But don’t wait too long to meet them–they may go back into the chiller in late spring to keep them at their ideal cool temperature.