News
and Updates (ARCHIVE 2008)
"The Great Turtle Release Auction and
Dinner"
Updated: November 13, 2008
The Great Turtle Release Auction and Dinner was held
on Saturday, November 8th at the Port Aransas Civic Center. More than
200 supporters of the Animal Rehabilitation Keep (ARK) of Port Aransas
enjoyed a lovely dinner, music by jazz clarinetist Jack Towbridge, and
a lively auction of the 41 decorated cast aluminum turtles featured in
the "Turtle Trail 2008" collection.
The event raised over $43,000 that will go directly
toward renovations at the turtle and bird rescue facility located on
the campus of the University of Texas Marine Science Institute in Port
Aransas.
The Friends of the Ark would like to thank all the
attendees and extend congratulations to all whose winning bid made
them the proud owner of one of the turtles. A special thanks goes to
Nancy and Keith Donley of Port Aransas who placed a top bid of $4,000
for "Sir Henry the Navigator" and another $2,000 for "Tiki
Turtle" and his surfboard. A full list and photos of the turtles,
the sponsors and artists, and the new owners will be posted soon on
this web site.
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"ARK Turtle Release Report"
Posted: May 19, 2008
On May 17th Tony Amos, director of the ARK, was joined by volunteers
at marker 35 on the beach for a release of rehabilitated turtles.
Approximately 200 supporters were present for this exciting and
educational event.
The event began with Master Sculptor Mark Landrum teaching children
how to make sand turtles. Mark kept the crowd entertained until the
trucks with the turtles arrived.
Two turtles were released back to the ocean:
Lump - a 20 year old Loggerhead weighing 252 lbs. Lump had been found
floating in Redfish Bay in Aransas Pass. He was rehabilitated at the
ARK for one year and was treated for an infection.
Tivoli - a 142 lbs Loggerhead found in Lavaca Bay. He was treated
at the ARK for one year. When found, he was a "floater" as
are 90% of the turtle patients at the ARK.
A third turtle named Petunia, a Hawksbill, was also scheduled to be
part of the release. She was found in 2004 weighing only 9 lbs. At
that time she was treated, tagged and released. Several months ago she
was rescued again, this time weighing 33 lbs. Petunia was treated
again and sent back to the ocean, only to swim parallel to the shore.
After a short distance Xavier Harrison, a Friends of the ARK
volunteer, realized she was in trouble and retrieved her from the
ocean. She is now back at the ARK for continued observation.
Here are some photos from the event. Click a picture to see an
enlargement.
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"Did You Know"
Updated: May 19, 2008
Did you know that there are two ways to reach our site? You can use either of these web addresses:
http://www.friendsoftheark.com/
or http://www.friendsoftheark.org/.
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