Andrea Oake

Andrea Oake brings deep dedication, expertise and care for the aquatic life to her work at Shedd Aquarium. As manager of cetaceans, Oake oversees the care, training and wellbeing of the aquarium’s Pacific white-sided dolphins and beluga whales, while supervising the dynamic public presentations and guest experiences that connect audiences to these remarkable animals. With more than a decade of experience with both species, Oake is committed to understanding animal behavior, building relationships and bolstering positive reinforcement training, all with the goal of fostering trust-based partnerships that support exceptional care.

During her career, Oake has supported several cetacean births and contributed to the successful hand-rearing of two calves at Shedd. Beyond her work in Chicago, Oake has lent her expertise to partner institutions to advance marine mammal care, including as a member of the rehabilitation team for a stranded beluga calf from the endangered Cook Inlet population.

In addition to her work with cetaceans, Oake also has led the care and programming for Shedd’s California sea lions and sea otters, overseeing otter transports for the aquarium’s sea otter surrogacy conservation program and helping rehabilitate and rear two orphaned northern sea otter pups.