As you prepare to stick to your resolutions for the new year, we wanted to share a few that we learned from our animals at SeaWorld Orlando, Aquatica, and

Only one breed of bear calls the dense jungles of South America home – the Spectacled Bear.  These shy creatures are rarely seen and have become listed as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List.  Although population data is sketchy, some estimates suggest that fewer than 3,000 spectacled bears may remain in the wild today.  The reasons for their disappearance are many – poaching, destruction of their habitat, and being killed by farmers as agricultural pests.

Conservation is once again the big winner!  SeaWorld San Diego continued its support of conservation and animal protection efforts in Southern California with its donation of nearly $5,000 ($4,812.02 to be exact!) to the San Diego chapter of the Conservation Fund. 

SeaWorld Orlando is using a custom orthopedic brace to care for once-stranded pilot whale.  The whale has scoliosis – or curvature of the spine – that prevents her from swimming normally.

In July of 1989, a young orphaned manatee was rescued near Daytona Beach, FL and brought to SeaWorld’s Manatee Rehabilitation Facility. Weighing only 42 pounds, this tiny calf was named Lil Joe. After hands-on care, Lil Joe would grow to become a special, not-so-little manatee.
 

Earlier this week, SeaWorld released two manatees to Blue Spring State Park in Florida. 

When the SeaWorld team returns a manatee to the wild -- as they did on Feb. 9 in North Palm Beach, Fla. -- what do they do?  What does it take?

Turns out the process involves dozens of people with different backgrounds and it's a bit more complicated than you'd think. And each step works to help save manatees in the wild.

20 healthy sea turtles are being returned to the wild by SeaWorld animal experts.  The turtles were rescued from the frigid waters of Cape Cod back in December and after intensive care at the New England Aquarium were flown to SeaWorld in Orlando.