Paula’s Day With Winter The Dolphin

I spent the day at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and I can't believe it was my first time. This is Nicolas the dolphin who just turned 17 years old. Nicolas was rescued on Christmas Eve with his mother caught in a crab trap. His mother didn't make it but 6 month old Nicolas did and you can see him at the CMA. You can tell how much they love their trainers, like big ole dogs.

Here's the animatronic dolphine used in Dolphin Tale 2

A model of Winter the Dolphin

The trainer is teaching the otter to get all the way on the scale including his tail, because 1/3 of their weight is in their tail.

This sea turtle was recently rescued after getting hit by a boat - he'll heal at CMA and then be released back into the Gulf.

Here are the Great White Pelicans that played the part of RUFUS in the Dolphin Tale movies.

Sure I got the $5 donation fake dolphin tatoo.

They kept the office and all the stuff used in the movie set.

There's way more at the CMA than I thought and we had no problem filling up 3 hours exploring everything. I will be going back!