Dolphin Tale Stars Get Birthday Bash at Clearwater Marine Aquarium

CLEARWATER, FL - There is still time to celebrate the birthdays of Winter and Hope, the dolphins at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Winter celebrated a 12th birthday on Tuesday and Hope had a 7th birthday Wednesday, but the aquarium will be holding a Birthday Bubble Bash each day until Monday, Oct. 16, according the the aquarium’s website.

Kids 12 and under who bring a birthday card for Winter and Hope will receive $9.99 admission. The aquarium also will hold several activities in honor of the dolphins’ birthdays, including:

• Sign a giant birthday card for Winter and Hope.
• Have a bubbly time in Spectrum Theatre with bubble machines.
• Enjoy the music and some fun hula hooping in the theatre
• Pin-the-tail on Winter game.

Kids also can create their own birthday card for Winter and Hope. Post your birthday card creation via photo or video to Clearwater Marine Aquarium’s Facebook page or to your own Instagram account (with the hashtag #CMAinspires) by 3 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 12. The aquarium will announce the winner on its Facebook page on Friday, Oct. 13.

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Winter and Hope also are accepting presents and have a wish list. Check out the Marine Mammal Wish List here. The list will provide kids with items that the animal care specialists use to create environmental enrichment devices for the dolphins.

If you are coming to the Birthday Bubble Bash event, you can place the present on the gift table that will be located in Spectrum Theatre.

Both Winter and Hope were in the movie series, Dolphin Tale and Dolphin Tale 2. Winter, a bottlenose dolphin with a prosthetic tail, was the subject of the 2011 film, Dolphin Tale. Hope was the subject of the 2014 sequel Dolphin Tale 2. Winter lost her tail in a crab trap in December 2005 while swimming in the coastal waters near Cape Canaveral, and she was later brought to the aquarium. She had difficulty swimming so she was fitted with a tail made from silicone and plastic.

For more information on the birthday bash, click here. The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is located at 249 Windward Passage, Clearwater.

Image via Clearwater Marine Aquarium