Owner

Taylor is the owner of Topsail Aquarium. He has been in love with the ocean his whole life.

When he isn't surfing, he is swimming, snorkeling, SCUBA diving, eating ice cream, speaking some espanol, playing guitar or just running around on the beach like a big, crazy kid. To him, life revolves around the ocean and he wouldn't have it any other way. His spirit animal is an opossum, but he really loves sharks. All of them, but especially the wobbegong. 

Owner

Ling is our Topsail Aquarium "mom". She is the epitome of fun.

Sometimes we wonder where she gets her wild energy, it never runs out. She is a "whale" of knowledge and can answer any question that you have about the aquarium. If she's not in the lab teaching, dissecting or playing with Petunia you can catch her on the beach doing yoga, playing in the sand with Indy, Vai, and Tola or singing karaoke. (Not really the singing karaoke part, thank goodness.) If she were a sea animal, she would want to be a whale shark, or a seahorse, or an sea turtle, or a black tip reef shark… Or anything, really.

Back of House Director

Ethan has been fascinated by marine life for as long as he can remember. Growing up in rural Maryland, he admired the ocean from afar before transferring to UNCW to finish his Marine Biology degree. Now, as the Director of Animal Husbandry at the Topsail Aquarium, he channels his passion through hands-on care for aquatic creatures and creative enclosure design. When he’s not at the aquarium, Ethan enjoys managing his twelve home aquariums, playing pickup basketball, and fishing in local streams. He is dedicated to inspiring future generations by showcasing animals in their natural habitats.

Aquarist