Join us for this special members-only tour of the Harbor Wetland exhibit and the Animal Care and Rescue Center with Jack Cover, general curator of the National Aquarium. Jack was instrumental in the development of Harbor Wetland, a 10,000-square-foot artificial salt marsh located between the aquarium’s two main buildings. The habitat is home to 40,000 grass and shrub specimens planted on buoyant plastic-fiber mats and represents the natural habitat that once existed there. Its unique design is the result of four prototypes designed and tested for the last 14 years. Fish and wildlife such as night herons and river otters have been spotted, checking out the new waterfront living.
Following our wetland tour, we’ll walk to the Animal Care and Rescue Center, about half a mile away. You may think that only sick or injured animals are housed there, but it is the first stop for every animal before it enters the aquarium’s exhibits. Animals stay for a standard quarantine period to ensure good health and for the staff to get to know them as individuals while giving them time to adapt. The center is also home to the National Aquarium Animal Rescue which rescues and rehabilitates endangered and protected seal and turtle species before their release back into the ocean. The ACRC houses two state-of-the-art suites for seal rehabilitation while rescued turtles are cared for at the main aquarium building.
Jack Cover is the National Aquarium’s general curator, responsible for ensuring that all the species and habitats at the Aquarium are thriving and diverse. Jack is one of the longest-serving members of the Aquarium team, having joined in 1987 as a herpetologist working in the rain forest exhibit.
If you are not a member of NHSM and would like to attend this program, follow this link to our membership page: https://www.marylandnature.org/get-involved/membership/. Please note that memberships take 24 hours to process before being activated.
- Our meeting location can be found in your registration confirmation email when payment is complete.
- Watch for additional details in a welcome email a few days before the date.
- Children over the age of 8 are welcome. Please adhere to this age requirement mandated by the aquarium.
- Be prepared to walk .5 miles to the ACRC and back to the aquarium.
- Dress according to the weather including shoes that are comfortable for walking city streets for a mile.
Payment and Cancellation Policy: Payment is due online at the time of registration. Cancellations made seven or more days in advance of the event will receive a refund minus a 5% processing fee. Cancellations made within seven days of the event will not receive a refund. Events and field trips with fees of $10 or less are not refundable at any time unless canceled by NHSM. NHSM retains the right to update or change these requirements at any time.