Aquarium was closed on April 18, leaving many wondering about Charlotte

Dean Hensley, Hendersonville Times-News
Updated ·2 min read
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HENDERSONVILLE - Visitors to the Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team ECCO at 511 N. Main St. were surprised to find it was closed on April 18.

That left many to wonder if something was happening with Charlotte, the stingray that is pregnant and is expected to give birth any day through a process called parthenogenesis, a type of asexual reproduction in which offspring develop from unfertilized eggs.

The Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team ECCO was closed April 18 for what staff called "scheduled programming."
The Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team ECCO was closed April 18 for what staff called "scheduled programming."

Team ECCO posted on its social media pages on April 17 that it would be closed April 18 and posted that "Charlotte is doing well and has not had her offspring yet. Thank you all (for) your support." The aquarium's normal hours are 1-4 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and 12:30-4 p.m. Saturday. It is closed Sunday-Tuesday.

The aquarium adopted Charlotte in 2016, and for the past eight years there hasn't been a male stingray in her tank. In September, staff noticed she had a small bump. An ultrasound was performed, and it was discovered that Charlotte was pregnant with up to four pups.

After getting bombarded with phone calls and media requests about updates on Charlotte, Team ECCO announced last month that it would be doing social media updates on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It also hired a public relations firm to handle all the media requests.

April 17 was the first time since the social media updates began that there was no new photo or video of Charlotte. The last update that had a video was on April 13, and it noted that Charlotte was growing a new barb.

"Her latest barb drop was Feb. 28. Charlotte is currently in the process of re-growing a new barb, which we see as a sign of health and thriving in her environment," Kinsley Boyette, assistant director of the Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team ECCO, said in the video. "Charlotte's behavior, resting and eating patterns have not changed since our last update."

Kate Foley from The Epic Consulting Group, a media consulting firm handling all press for the aquarium, confirmed the aquarium was closed for scheduled programming on April 18. She said the aquarium was scheduled to reopen for normal business hours (1-4 p.m.) on April 19.

Dean Hensley is the news editor for the Hendersonville Times-News. Email him with tips, questions and comments at DHensley@gannett.com. Please help support this kind of local journalism with a subscription to the Hendersonville Times-News.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Last Team ECCO Charlotte update was on aquarium being closed April 18