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During 2007 a lost sea elephant appeared at the Miramar beaches in Buenos Aires, Argentina. When tourists arrived at the beach, they found the 1,200-pound animal staring back at them. Oscar Balmaceda, press director for the Mar del Plata Aquarium and Foundation near Miramar, recalls: “People working at beach resorts called the foundation first thing in the morning. They were terrified by this huge animal, didn’t know what to do, and tourists were arriving.”
When biologists from the foundation arrived, they assessed the animal’s condition and determined it got lost at sea, became tired, and landed on a touristy stretch of beach. They used big wooden tables to push the sea elephant toward a deserted beach, waited two days until the animal was fully recovered, and helped it return to sea.
Through the years, Latin American foundations and research centers linked to aquariums such as the Mar del Plata, the Veracruz Aquarium in Mexico, and the Ubatuba Foundation in Brazil have developed highly efficient sea fauna recovery and rehabilitation programs designed to return harmed animal species to the wild. The animals they treat are victims of a range of conditions, such as bycatch, overfishing, injury, or fatigue, among others.
The 2008 International Union for Conservation of Nature reported 22 percent of the marine species as threatened, making these facilities’ programs critical to the future of marine wildlife.
Aquarium Recovery and Rescue
“Even though there are in some parts some state policies regarding sea wildlife conservation, perhaps one of the most important efforts is due to sea aquarium foundations, especially regarding the conservation of local emblematic species [such as] sea mammals and birds,” says Rodolfo Elías, natural sciences professor at Mar del Plata University, in Argentina. “In the Argentinean Patagonia there are problems every year with oil leakages and pollution that mostly affect sea birds. When this occurs, these foundations and their volunteers are the first to respond, saving thousands of animals.”
For example, at Mar del Plata, once oil-slicked penguins enter the rehabilitation program, they are rehydrated and fed through a tube. They are then washed to remove oil, and about 40 days later, they are fit to be returned to sea. “We usually recover almost 400 penguins per year. They are mostly oil slicked, emaciated, or beaten by boats or rocks,” says Balmaceda.
Penguins are not the only animals affected; there are growing numbers of pinnipeds (fin-footed mammals such as walruses and seals) and other mammals pushed toward beaches and shores due to lack of food, storms, or variations in sea streams. Sea turtles are also frequent victims as they eat plastic and rope resulting from human pollution or become entangled in fishnets. In those cases animals are evaluated by biologists and veterinarians and undergo a rehabilitation program. “We recover mostly sea turtles that local fishermen bring to the aquarium, as they catch them with their nets or find them very ill at sea,” says Fabián Vanoye Lara, head of the mammals, birds, and reptiles operation at Veracruz Aquarium Investigation and Education Center.
The foundations’ ultimate goal is to return these rehabilitated animals to the wild, but there are times when that is not possible. “We usually recover about 400 penguins, from 50 to 70 sea lions, and almost 40 sea turtles per year [and we] rehabilitate most of them and return them to the wild,” says Balmaceda. The ones that do not return to the sea arrive mostly in bad health conditions and die or are too impaired to return and survive by their own means. “We have a one winged cormorant and a blind seal rescued after being hit by a boat. They would not survive in their natural habitats, so they are now part of our [facility],” says Balmaceda.
In the Ubatuba Foundation in Brazil, the recovery programs are more directed toward penguins, as pinnipeds and mammals are not so frequent on their coasts. “As we receive many Magellanic penguins per year [which are not listed asendangered species], sometimes other Brazilian zoos and aquariums request some specimens to complete their [inventory],” says Hugo Gallo, executive director and founder of the aquarium and foundation, located in the São Paulo area.
Research and Education
Sea wildlife preservation foundations in Latin America are not limited to animal rescue, but also put a strong emphasis on investigation. They mainly focus on developing rehabilitation techniques for sea animals, studies regarding sea streams and variations, and wildlife preservation. In October, researchers from the Ubatuba Aquarium released a group of recovered and marked Magellanic penguins into the sea to study their migratory flow. Gallo describes the importance of the aquariums working together to learn more about the marine habitat.
 “The Ubatuba, Santos, and Guarujá aquariums [all from Brazil] are working side-by-side with national institutions in the first joint project to determine the exact location and flow of the Brazilian sea stream,” he says. “We are collaborating with the National Institute of Space Research and Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources by marking recovered penguins and then releasing them to the sea to determine if there was any change in their migratory flow back to the Patagonia [Argentina].”
Meanwhile at Veracruz Aquarium, staff members developed several investigation programs to carry out at the aquarium’s Investigation and Educational Center: sharks, manatees, coral trees, jellyfish, red tie, and fish reproduction programs. These research projects might help certain nongovernmental organizations develop a timeline of the state of sea fauna in Latin America and shed some light on the effects of pollution and global warming on sea biodiversity.
These facilities also parlay their work into education programs that inform the public about the importance of preserving the environment and marine wildlife. “The foundation’s staff developed a guided tour inside the facilities so children from any part of the country can visit us to learn about sea fauna and how to avoid sea pollution,” says Balmaceda of Mar del Plata.
Many foundations have also developed internships and master’s programs in conjunction with universities to offer graduates the opportunity to continue their studies alongside aquarium experts and scientists.
To learn more about the aquariums mentioned in this article, visit their web sites at www.acuariodeveracruz.com (Veracruz Aquarium), www.aquariodeubatuba.com.br (Ubatuba Aquarium), and www.mdpaquarium.com.ar (Mar del Plata Aquarium).
Ana Belluscio is a freelance journalist based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She writes for a variety of printed and online international publications in Spanish, Italian, and English. She can be reached at anabelluscio@fibertel.com.ar.
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