Topics Related to North Carolina Aquariums / Jennette's Pier

The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) announced today that Hap Fatzinger has been chosen as director for the North Carolina Aquariums Division. Fatzinger will take over the role Jan. 15, and follows the departure of Maylon White, who retired in June after leading the division since 2019.
Trash is scary and this Halloween season, the community is invited to work together to slay pollution at the Boo to Trash Beach Cleanup, Sunday, Oct. 22, 8-10 a.m. at Carolina Beach Pier hosted by the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, the Town of Carolina Beach and Carolina Beach Pier. Everyone is invited to wear a favorite costume for a contest and the Aquarium will provide the treats!
Under sunny skies on Sept. 16, a short and heartfelt ceremony dedicating a popular bronze sea turtle sculpture in memory of Millie Overman was held. Millie is known to many as the matriarch of the Network for Endangered Sea Turtles (N.E.S.T.) and of sea turtle conservation on the Outer Banks.
Leading women scientists in the Cape Fear region will highlight the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher (NCAFF) 2023 Femme in STEM Saturday, Sept. 16, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. With exciting hands-on activities and experiments, visitors will have the opportunity to look through microscopes, experience a tornado machine, and even get their hands dirty with some soil samples.
There’s a Whole Lotta Otta at the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher (NCAFF) thanks to prolific parents Leia and Quincy, a pair of Asian small-clawed otters. They welcomed two litters of three pups in less than a year. The rambunctious romp of otters is complemented by Asta and Ray, the mother-son duo who live around the corner—all told 10 otters in the Otters on the Edge habitat.
The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) announced today that Clint Taylor has been named the next director of the N.C. Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores. An aquarium employee for more than 18 years, Taylor currently serves as assistant aquarium director at Fort Fisher.
Luna, Shelldon and the romp of otters are among the many exciting animals that are drawing visitors to the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher (NCAFF) in record numbers—500,000 in a year to be exact. For the Aquarium team, more is more. More students, children and families who come for the animals and leave with inspiration. Reaching a broader audience is at the core of the Aquarium mission to inspire appreciation and conservation of our aquatic environments.
In honor of Earth Day on April 22, N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources sites have some great events planned throughout April.

First held on April 22, 1970, Earth Day was established to demonstrate support for environmental protection and to encourage people to learn more about pollution, climate change, endangered species, and other environmental issues. Earth Day now includes a wide range of globally coordinated events, including many in North Carolina.
The national Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded two separate grants to fund projects at the N.C. Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores and Town Creek Indian Mound State Historic Site. Both facilities are part of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.
On May 22, 1939, work began on Jennette’s Ocean Pier in Nags Head, the first fishing pier on the Outer Banks.The 750-foot wooden structure was built by Elizabeth City’s Warren Jennette, Sr., who purchased the former site of Camp Weaver, a WPA transient camp that housed workers who built sand dunes in the area. Some buildings were converted into overnight accommodations for fishermen.