Month: April 2013

We’re Going BLUE for World Oceans Day!

One World One Ocean Foundation Display outside of MG 3D Theater

One World One Ocean Foundation Display outside of MG 3D Theater

We’ll be celebrating World Ocean Day on June 8 with ocean-themed activities across the property to raise awareness about ocean conservation.   Guests can dive into aquatic movies, a special presentation at the MG 3D Theater, keeper activities at the Aquarium Pyramid®, special discounts and live concerts.

Like Moody Gardens, the One World One Ocean Foundation hopes to inspire generations to help protect the ocean.

“Earth Day is the ideal day to make an announcement about World Oceans Day activities,” said Moody Gardens President John Zendt. “The ocean plays a vital role in our conservation efforts.”

In partnership with the Foundation, Moody Gardens created an elaborate exhibit at the MG 3D Theater exit and donated $1,000 to the Foundation. The exhibit highlights the importance of ocean conservation with staggering statistics and beautiful imagery.

Beginning at 10 a.m., visitors can join Marine Biologist Sarah Bedolfe via Skype at the MG 3D Theater. Bedolfe, who works with film producers MacGillvray Freeman, will highlight the importance of conservation. Families can learn about whale sharks, sea turtles, coconut octopus and other exotic animals featured in upcoming films.

Audiences ages 12 to 18 can get involved by producing a video telling judges what the ocean means to them. Grand prize winners will receive $100 and a Go Pro HD HERO3 camera. For more information, visit www.worldoceansday.org.

Visitors can also help support ocean conservation when Bands on the Sand kicks off at Palm Beach with the popular beach group, the Intercoastal Pirates. Visitors can donate to the One World One Ocean Foundation, with Cadillac matching the donation up to $1,000. The summer concert series is sponsored by Cadillac with fireworks.

Guests can also watch a diverse range of ocean-themed movies throughout the day or visit the Aquarium Pyramid for presentations. A special World Oceans Day combo will be offered, featuring admission to the Aquarium Pyramid and MG 3D Theater for $24.95.

About World Oceans Day

Coordinated by The Ocean Project and World Ocean Network, World Oceans Day was recognized by the United Nations in 2008, encouraging people around the world to celebrate how water connects the globe and impacts all life forms. 

Notes from Birding 101: April 13, 2013

Brown-Pelican

by Greg Whittaker, Animal Husbandry Manager at Moody Gardens

Excellent weather – walked around Aquarium Pyramid and retention ditch to Colonel Paddlewheeler dock.  Then walked the path around Palm Beach and to the Lake Madeline channel. We went back past the Learning Place and ended at the hotel near the pool.

By my count we saw 33 species listed here in taxonomic order (not the order we saw them):

Mottled Duck, Blue-winged Teal, Common Loon, Brown Pelican, Neotropic Cormorant, Double-crested Cormorant, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Peregrine Falcon, Black-bellied Plover, Killdeer, Black-necked Stilt, Solitary Sandpiper, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Ruddy Turnstone, Western Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Baird’s Sandpiper, Dunlin, Laughing Gull, Forster’s Tern, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared Dove, White-winged Dove, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Barn Swallow, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Scarlet Tanager, Great-tailed Grackle and House Sparrow.

Birding 201 is next Saturday, April 20 and there is a limit to the number of people we can take.  We will leave Moody Gardens in a van and spend about 2-3 hours out in the field.  Please respond and let me know if you are interested in going so we can reserve a seat.  To reserve a spot, please call 409-683-4101 no later than Wednesday, April 17.

Get out and see the birds this week, there are lots of them here on the island and lots of other birders to help you identify things.  I just tallied what I’ve seen since Thursday when Featherfest started and have 103 species.

GREEN ACTIVITIES FOR EARTH DAY

MainPic-Gree

In celebration of its mission of conservation, Moody Gardens will feature free presentations, activities and fun, as well as special discounts this Earth Day weekend, April 20 and 21.

Join the Galveston County Master Gardeners in the Herb Garden by the Discovery Pyramid® to learn about easy gardening tips on Texas butterfly gardens. Guests can also pick up a homemade pot and learn how to make one of their own with materials found around the house. Children can enjoy plenty of activities including make-and-take butterfly crafts and recycled seed starters. In the Visitors Center, the Oleander Festival will feature more than 60 varieties of oleander flowers.

At the Aquarium Pyramid, Moody Gardens biologists will be holding special keeper presentations throughout both days. Visitors will be amazed by the massive seals as they are rewarded with fish for completing training exercises at 10:30 a.m. and 2:15 p.m.

Biologists will begin penguin feedings at 11:00 a.m. and 3 p.m., so families can adore and spot the newest King penguin, Watt. In the South Pacific exhibit, biologists will suit up and dive in at 11:30 a.m. to feed sting rays, sharks and more than 200 species of fish.  In the one million-gallon Caribbean tank, guests can watch divers feed the tropical fish, sharks and barracudas at 2 p.m.

As guests tour the Rainforest Pyramid, the Society for the Advancement of Volunteer Youth group (SAVY) will have educational carts out to teach visitors about the importance of conservation and preservation. At 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., biologists will release beautiful butterflies in their netted exhibit on the top canopy of the Rainforest Pyramid. Guests can also take pictures of the newborn Prehensile Tailed Porcupine, before heading over to the Ocelot’s exhibit for a keeper presentation at 1 p.m.

The Earth Day activities and Oleander Festival are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 20 and 21, and admission is free to the public. A special $24.95 combo pass to the Aquarium and Rainforest Pyramids will be available during the festival. For more information, call Moody Gardens at 800-582-4673 or visit www.moodygardens.org and www.oleander.org.

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