As we enter into a new year, it’s inspiring to look back and reflect on all that was accomplished the year before. Here at SeaWorld Orlando, a large part of what makes us who we are is the incredible animal rescue, rehabilitation and return efforts that happen on a daily basis.

From tiny newborn turtle hatchlings to manatees weighing more than half a ton, we’ve had the extraordinary privilege to care for some amazing animals and then return them to their natural environment, which is always our goal.

It is that special time of year again where everyone takes a moment to reflect back and think of what they are most thankful for. In our case, the animals that we care for surely make the top of the list! We are most thankful to have the opportunity to care for animals both within and outside our park. Of course, we can’t forget all of the passionate and dedicated people who make it all possible.

Six months after finding an approximately five-day-old dolphin while boating in Florida waters, the family that alerted the appropriate authorities and stayed with the young calf until help arrived was reunited with the dolphin at SeaWorld Orlando.

After providing two weeks of rehabilitative care due to a fishing line entanglement, SeaWorld Orlando Animal Rescue Team Members returned a male sandhill crane home to his mate in Central Florida.

Yesterday morning, Sept. 27, SeaWorld Orlando’s Animal Rescue Team, along with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and Sea to Shore, rescued a wayward manatee nicknamed Lil Joe who was lost in the Little Econlockhatchee River in Seminole County, Fla.

This morning SeaWorld's animal rescue team returned manatee Kahula, who weighs close to 900 pounds, to the waters off Merritt Island, Fla. You might have seen Kahula in our rehab pool - the one with the scare around his entire body.

Kahula was just a bit excited to be back home

SeaWorld Orlando’s Aviculture team recently received the first sandhill crane chick of the year -- an orphan, brought in by a concerned resident from St. Cloud, Fla.

Kringle, a male manatee, was brought to SeaWorld’s manatee rehabilitation facility yesterday afternoon, by experts from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the Jacksonville Zoo. The manatee was rescued from the St. John’s River, near Jacksonville.