Watermarks

Summer 2022

Welcome to Watermarks

Dive into our summer 2022 issue of Watermarks for a look at our past, our present—and the future we are building together. We'll meet an early Aquarium visionary, check in on a face-lift to our iconic silhouette, and fast-forward to a greener future in our buildings and our city with the support of members like you.

In This Issue

We're taking a look at changes and upgrades to our buildings that will ensure a better future for animals, people and the planet, while celebrating the firm foundation laid by a fascinating visionary Baltimorean, and a hands-on assist from members like you!

Home, Sweet (Temporary) Home

Many of the animal residents of Upland Tropical Rain Forest made a temporary transition to our Animal Care and Rescue Center while the exhib...

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The Life and Legacy of Henry Hall

Our Climate Commitment: Q&A With Laura B...

Members Help Defend Fort McHenry Habitat...

Home, Sweet (Temporary) Home

Forty-one years after our grand opening, the iconic angular glass pyramid of our Upland Tropical Rain Forest habitat is receiving a much-needed refresh. See how our teams transfer and tend to the exhibit's diverse animals which have relocated to the Animal Care and Rescue Center.

Follow The Process

Henry Hall, Aqua-Visionary

Henry Hall, the late Baltimore engineer, aquarist and philanthropist, was a man of diverse interests and talents who saw the potential for our Aquarium before its inception. We met his relatives, the Tutman family, to learn more about this brilliant Black visionary.

Photo: Hall's great-great nephew Fred Tutman, right, and his mother Elaine carry on Henry Hall's legacy.

The Ebb and Flow of a Salt Marsh Habitat

Join National Aquarium General Curator Jack Cover for a gorgeous gaze into the daily tidal ebb and flow of a Chesapeake salt marsh habitat. A fascinating timelapse video helps us understand the intricacies and importance of one of our region's critical landscapes.

Climate Commitment Q&A

We sat down with Vice President of Conservation Programs Laura Bankey to get a better understanding of the Aquarium's commitment to shift our operations to net-zero emissions by 2035. Hear more about the work that guides our plans—and peek ahead to a greener future!

Photo: The Solar Tree, a joint project between the Aquarium and Constellation seen here lit up on our campus at night, is just one piece of our climate commitment.

A Major Membership Milestone 30,000 Member Households!

We appreciate members like you who provide vital support of our mission to inspire conservation of the world's aquatic treasures. Thank you for being a valued member of the Aquarium community!

Voyages Program Partner Shodekeh

"By exploring the wide variety of vocal calls, methodologies and systems of communication of the different animal species at the Aquarium, this overall journey has served as a very rich resource of compositional possibilities."

Baltimore vocal and breath artist Shodekeh describing the inspiration he found within the Aquarium while developing his work for our inaugural Voyages event in July.

Aquarium Members Defend Fort McHenry

Members like you came out to join the Aquarium Conservation team in defending Fort McHenry habitats by removing debris from the wetland and maintaining rain and pollinator gardens adjacent to Baltimore's National Monument and Historic Shrine.

Photo: National Aquarium members like those seen here worked to remove debris from the Fort McHenry wetland at a member conservation event in June.

Animal Updates

This summer, we're sharing an Australian baby boom and Animal Rescue release updates—and looking for your support of sea turtle legislation!

Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle, Guitar, in a Shallow Wave During its Release at Cape Hatteras National Seashore
Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle, Bagpipes, on the Sand Being Released by 2 Aquarium Employees at Assateague State Park
Grey seal Louis Armstrong in front of a National Aquarium logo board on the beach at his release
Close-up of a Baby Hosmer's Skink Resting Atop a Caretaker's Finger

More from Past Watermarks

Animals Birds of a Feather

Multimedia VP of Conservation Programs Laura Bankey at Assateague Island National Seashore

Conservation Floating Wetlands: Five Lessons Over Eleven Years

Support the National Aquarium Together, we can change the way humanity cares for our ocean planet.