Turtle Base

Researchers at Turtle Base Tampa have lost contact with Tango! The female loggerhead sea turtle, tagged when she was young, usually returns to nest on her home beach every few years. But this year she has not come back! In the past, Tango provides valuable behavioral and tracking data to help expand our understanding and knowledge of sea turtles. We need your help to search for Tango!

With this call to action, students and visitors to the Florida Aquarium are challenged to help in the search. Spending time at the Turtle Base Tampa conservation outpost, they learn about the life and habits of sea turtles and how humans can live in harmony with these majestic sea creatures. 

Florida Aquarium VP of Education Debbi Stone says, “the narrative of the Operation Tango sea turtle mystery is structured to allow students to use a combination of technology and hands-on experiences to incorporate critical thinking and problem-solving skills.”

The adventure story begins with a video presentation in the Turtle Base Tampa hub of the Carol J. and Barney Barnett Learning Center at Florida Aquarium in Tampa, FL. Here, the introduction of Tango’s story unfolds in a space designed to evoke the sense of an underwater science facility. It progresses through three learning spaces – the Green Room, Coastal Florida, and the Open Ocean, where students can conduct hands-on investigations, gathering clues intended to help them develop theories about Tango’s whereabouts.

Operation Tango’s flexible story line and setwork were developed by IDEAS with guidance from the Florida Aquarium education team, led by Education VP Debbi Stone, Director of Education Lauren Tyler and Director of Exhibits and Graphic Design Pete Colangelo. Each room also features a 70-inch Mondopad, a wall-mounted touchscreen computer with Internet access, white-board functionality, and video conferencing capability for education program support.

The Learning Center is used for school field trips, scout workshops, sleepovers, birthday parties, preschool classes, and other STEM education programs. It is also used for the Florida Aquarium’s summer camps, as well as for professional development programs for teachers.

Since the launch in 2014, Tango has become a popular Florida Aquarium character and is an active component of the aquarium’s outreach and education programs.

Excerpts and staff quotes courtesy of 83 Degrees (www.83degreesmedia.com) online article published on 11/18/2014 and written by Carter Gaddis, https://www.83degreesmedia.com/features/aquarium111814.aspx.