Amos Rehabilitation Keep - ARK at UT Marine Science Institute

Amos Rehabilitation Keep - ARK at UT Marine Science Institute Amos Rehabilitation Keep
(Formerly the Animal Rehabilitation Keep)
750 Channel View Drive
Port-A, TX Edith S. McAllister Animal Rehabilitation Keep
(2)

Thank you to all our amazing volunteers who assisted today getting the ARK all cleaned up!!
08/22/2026

Thank you to all our amazing volunteers who assisted today getting the ARK all cleaned up!!

Jetty entrapment continues to be one of our primary causes of sea turtle admission! These two turtles, named Daryl and ...
08/14/2026

Jetty entrapment continues to be one of our primary causes of sea turtle admission! These two turtles, named Daryl and Murray, were rescued today.

Both of these turtles sustained scratches and abrasions with some bleeding from the rocks and are now being cared for at the ARK!

Please call 1-866-TURTLE-5 if you encounter a jetty trapped turtle and select the appropriate number for your area. If we are on the line with another caller, please leave a message and we’ll call you right back. Please do not attempt to rescue or release turtles before responders arrive. Many of these turtles benefit from medical care, and there are safety risks to both turtle and people for untrained responders, sometimes even situations where well meaning individuals may inadvertently push turtles further under the rocks making rescue efforts more difficult or impossible.

Thank you to everyone who reports stranded, nesting, and deceased turtles to us! Because of vigilant people out sharing the same spaces as these animals, they can get a second chance!

08/12/2026

Our amazing volunteer Ada found this immature Masked B***y lethargic, thin, beached, and covered in parasites at Mustang Island State Park - Texas Parks and Wildlife during a turtle patrol just over two months ago! Today, he was ready to be returned to the wild!

08/04/2026

This adult Great Horned Owl was released this week about an hour before dusk! This owl was brought to us by a Kleberg county sheriff after being found stuck to a barbed wire fence. Thankfully, the damage was minimal and the wounds healed quickly.

Adult Great Horned Owls are thought have a home territory of only 1.5 square miles and the parents provide supplemental support for their babies until about September or October of each year, when the babies then disperse and set up on their own territories usually within 20 miles of where they were born. This is one of the reasons we ask for specific rescue locations when we admit these animals, so they can be returned exactly back into their own home territory, especially when they may still be supporting offspring!

This owl returned back to his territory where thankfully barbed wire fencing is minimal and most landowners are using King Ranch fencing which is a style of heavy duty mesh fencing that lacks the barbed wire component.

Today is National Intern Day! This week wraps up our summer internship program. This year, the ARK for the first time ...
07/30/2026

Today is National Intern Day! This week wraps up our summer internship program. This year, the ARK for the first time ever offered two full-time paid internship positions for the months of June and July.

In June, interns worked part time with the Summer Science program with the Mission-Aransas NERR Education Department and part time with the ARK. In July, they worked full time for the ARK!

We'd like to thank Jessie Thompson and Alex Martin for all their hard work and dedication over the summer! They worked tirelessly rescuing jetty-trapped and entangled turtles, on site at the ARK gaining experience in a rehabilitation setting, and doing everything and anything in between! As part of the internship, they both also took the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council Fundamentals of Wildlife Rehabilitation course!

At this time of year, we receive tons of calls about families of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks wandering city streets al...
07/29/2026

At this time of year, we receive tons of calls about families of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks wandering city streets along with their ducklings.

This species of duck breeds in cavities in mature trees and often times do not need a pond to survive, although they may eventually head towards one. These ducklings, similar to wood ducks, are highly stressed and do not always do well with human interference or in a captive setting. The best thing to do if the parents are present is to help them safely cross the street in the direction they were heading and allow them to be on their way. A bird’s best chance of survival is with its own parents.

Not only is it best to leave these animals in the wild where they belong, but wildlife rehabilitation permits do not cover the capture and relocation of native healthy animals, so rehabilitation centers cannot legally take possession of baby birds who are found with their parents and are behaving naturally. Rehabilitators are permitted by state and federal law only to take orphaned, sick, and injured animals into our care for treatment. As these birds are federally protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, we are prohibited just like the public, from relocating or recommending relocation of healthy families of animals.

If you encounter a situation where the ducklings are truly orphaned, entrapped in an enclosed area such as a manhole, or they are ill or injured, the best course of action will be to reach out to your local rehabilitation center to discuss next steps!

We appreciate all the calls we get from concerned citizens each year about these ducklings, but also strive to educate on the natural history of this unique species native to south Texas!

Can you find the entrapped turtles?Jetty entrapment continues to be the highest cause of intake for Green sea turtles in...
07/26/2026

Can you find the entrapped turtles?

Jetty entrapment continues to be the highest cause of intake for Green sea turtles in our response area! We’re receiving calls daily for entrapped turtles at all of our jetty systems! While many appear healthy, many are also dehydrated, pr*****ed, and have deep abrasions that require medical care. Please call 1-866-TURTLE-5 so that we can respond and document all jetty entrapment cases. Our volunteers and staff have been busy all week recovering these animals!

We’d also like to thank Nueces County Coastal Park and Texas Sealife Center for aiding with the rescue and rehabilitation of some of the turtles in the southern end of our response area due to the high volume of calls! Rescue and rehabilitation is all about partnering and working together to save as many animals as possible, and we’re glad to have such great partners here willing to step in and lend a helping hand!

(Photos by Julie Funk)

07/23/2026

A Kemp’s ridley sea turtle hatchling release is scheduled for Saturday, July 25, 2026, at 6:45am on Malaquite Beach. Here are a few things to consider!

⚠️ IF THERE IS NO UPDATE TO THIS POST, THAT MEANS THAT THE HATCHLING RELEASE IS HAPPENING AS PLANNED. ⚠️

📞 Call the Hatchling Hotline at (361) 949-7163 before you drive out to the seashore to make sure the release is happening. The hotline is a recorded message you can call anytime day or night.

🌩️ Hatchling releases may be cancelled if the turtles have not hatched on the expected date, due to bad weather (ex. pouring rain, lightning on the beach, high winds), extreme high tides, or flooding over roadways, etc.

💲 Park entrance fees are required to enter the park year-round. To save time, purchase your entrance pass online BEFORE coming to the park.

🎟️ The $10 per vehicle one-day pass expires at midnight on the date of purchase. Do not purchase this pass the night before the hatchling release as it will be expired in the morning. Purchase your $10 per vehicle one-day pass the morning of the hatchling release only AFTER calling the calling the Hatchling Hotline to verify the release is happening.

🪪 Annual and lifetime pass holders do not need to pay the park entrance fee but must present their pass and ID at the entrance station.

🚗 Expect delays of up to 30-minutes entering the park. Hatchling releases take place on Malaquite Beach in front of the Malaquite Visitor Center. The visitor center is located 15-minutes south of the park entrance station. Once you arrive at the release site, you must park in a parking lot, walk across the visitor center deck, down the ramp and out to the beach. Driving on Malaquite Beach to the hatchling release site is not permitted. If you have not been to the park before, take some time to look at a map of the park.

🐕‍🦺 Please leave your pets at home. Trained service animals, authorized under the ADA are allowed.

🛍️ Looking for a souvenir? The park store only accepts credit and debit cards or mobile phone payments.

❓ For more information about how to prepare to attend a release, please visit go.nps.gov/HatchlingRelease

Since November 2020, the ARK has released 462 Brown Pelicans which have been banded! Thanks to the community reporting t...
07/21/2026

Since November 2020, the ARK has released 462 Brown Pelicans which have been banded! Thanks to the community reporting these bands to www.reportband.gov , we have accumulated 926 reports of these birds as of today! See attached heat maps of the resighting locations!
Not only do we learn how our birds adapt back to the wild after release, but we're also able to collect movement data and ensure that these rehabilitated birds are following the expected migrations and behaviors of their wild counterparts!

We'd like to thank Corpus Christi Fire Department Station 4 for assisting with rescuing this juvenile Green Sea Turtle a...
07/20/2026

We'd like to thank Corpus Christi Fire Department Station 4 for assisting with rescuing this juvenile Green Sea Turtle at North Packery Channel this morning. The turtle was tethered with braided fishing line around their neck and front flippers to the seafloor, just out of reach of our responders! The fire department happened to be on site for training exercises and quickly jumped in to help rescue the turtle and bring them ashore to our responders!

Photos by Paula Baker and Kay Culpepper

Address

750 Channel View Drive
Port Aransas, TX
78373

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 12:30pm
1:30pm - 6pm
Friday 9am - 6pm
Saturday 8:30am - 5pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm

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