Florida Aquarium

African penguins helped the Florida Aquarium make its case at the Florida Capitol, urging lawmakers to continue funding coral reef restoration and invest in hurricane protection for the aquarium.

Late last month, record-low temperatures cooled down the waters of the Gulf and the Atlantic significantly, causing almost 800 sea turtles to wash ashore across Florida’s beaches.

The Florida Aquarium is releasing 9,000 juvenile corals that were born and grown at its Apollo Beach facility, and transferring them to larger grow houses before they're planted back on the state's coral reef.

On this episode of "Florida Matters," we discuss how the future of Florida's corals hangs in the balance, HOA-issued speeding citations are raising privacy concerns in Sarasota and more.

The Florida Aquarium has seen a 300% patient increase at its sea turtle hospital due in large part to cold-stunning.

The researchers, with others from Honduras, are looking for ways to help reefs survive increased temps caused by global warming. The work could provide a blueprint for working across the Caribbean to share corals.

Against the odds of a warming ocean, the next generation of corals heads out to sea.

The "coral defenders" are made of plastic called PHA. Similar to a potato starch, it naturally breaks down when exposed, especially to salt water.

"Waves of green sea turtles" were being rescued after experiencing symptoms similar to frostbite from last week's winter storm.

"By freezing these larvae, they can be held for literally hundreds of years," said Keri O'Neil with the Florida Aquarium.

The expanded complex doubles the original facility's capacity with state-of-the-art coral care equipment. The upgrades are worth $3 million.

Darryl Shaw, one of the figures behind the Ybor City Gas Worx project, will be leading the Sea Change fundraising campaign to fund the Florida Aquarium's expansion plan.