Andrew
01-22-2004, 09:38 AM
1. EXHIBIT NEWS: MEDUSAFISH, PURPLE-STRIPED JELLIES
Look for three new juvenile medusafish in our "Exploring the Outer Bay" gallery. As juveniles, they swim among a jelly’s tentacles for protection; they're apparently immune to the sting. As they grow, they begin to eat their jelly host. Little is known about their lives, and we're the only aquarium in the world to display them.
You'll find several young purple-striped jellies in the Outer Bay galleries. Raised by our aquarists, they lack the distinctive purple stripes of the older jellies. Instead, they're translucent white with no stripes; slightly older ones are translucent with stripes.
Visit What’s New on our web site to learn about other new arrivals in our exhibits.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_whatsnew.asp>
2. NEW ON THE WEB: OUR 20TH ANNIVERSARY
Hard to believe, but it’s our 20th anniversary year. So much has happened since we opened our doors on October 20, 1984. You can find the highlights in a dynamic timeline that dates back to the earliest discussion of a Monterey Bay Aquarium--in 1914! There’s also a trivia quiz--and a place for you to share your favorite aquarium memories and photos. We'll have special programs and events throughout the year. Check our web site for details, and we'll keep you posted in Sea Notes.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/aa/celebrating.asp>
3. AT THE AQUARIUM: KEEPERS OF THE SHARKS
For more than a year, our aquarists have been caring for nearly two dozen species of sharks and rays in preparation for "Sharks: Myth and Mystery." When it opens April 2, we'll display animals from tropical and temperate waters, as well as freshwater species. It’s quite a challenge.
Some, like blacktip reef sharks, bamboo sharks and the cownose and thornback rays, are familiar to our staff. Others, like the Galapagos shark and the freshwater rays, have never been displayed here before. (With the Galapagos shark, it’s the first time one has been displayed outside Hawaii.) They all have different needs that aquarists have to address.
For example, scalloped hammerhead sharks, Galapagos sharks and pelagic rays need a long glide path to conserve energy as they swim. So we've designed a tropical reef exhibit that’s over 30 feet wide with a 17-foot-long viewing window. It contains nearly 20,000 gallons of sea water--larger than all but our four biggest permanent displays.
Water temperature is critical, and temperatures have to be fine-tuned for each display. Food is important, too. The diversity of species means a varied menu. Smaller sharks and rays are gentle enough to feed by hand, but aquarists use long poles with fish attached to feed the more aggressive species. The pelagic rays will be trained to recognize a target that, when presented by an aquarist, means it’s time to eat.
Preview the new exhibit online!
<http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/sharks.asp>
4. PROMOTIONS & EVENTS: FREE ADULT TICKET, SHARK DAYS, LOVE AT THE AQUARIUM, DIA DEL NINO
Here’s a deal too good to pass up. Starting January 24 and 25 with our "Sharks Days Celebration," visit us anytime through April 1, buy an adult admission ticket, and you'll get another adult ticket good for a return visit to see "Sharks: Myth and Mystery." The tickets are non-transferable and can be used to visit between April 2 and May 31. The offer is valid only with a paid adult admission.
Regardless, you won't want to miss our "Shark Days Celebration" this Saturday and Sunday, January 24 and 25. You'll have the chance to learn about these awesome creatures from the experts who care for them at the aquarium. Other highlights: special feeding presentations, hula dancers, crafts for kids, auditorium programs and prize drawings. You could win tickets to preview "Sharks: Myth and Mystery."
"Shark Days Celebration" is free with regular aquarium admission.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_events/vi_events_sharks.asp>
Love at the Aquarium, February 14, Saturday
On Valentine’s Day, love will be in the air and under water during a romantic evening of delectable tastings, dancing and surprising insights into the mating secrets of marine creatures. There’s an optional strolling dinner at 7 p.m. in the Outer Bay galleries with dessert, wines and live music. The DJ dance party starts at 8 p.m., with chocolate tastings and optional tastings of Monterey County wines.
Admission for the dinner and dance party is $85/person. The dance party with wine tasting is $45/person; without wine tasting, $35/person. Advance reservations required for dinner. Contact Event Sales at (831) 647-6877, or by e-mail at mailto:eventsales@mbayaq.org.
Also optional: Bring your Valentine and enjoy Passport Weekend in Monterey County's wine country from Feb. 13-15, with tastings, entertainment, gourmet treats and prize drawings.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_promotions.asp>
<http://www.montereywines.org/events_passport.html>
Sharks: Myth & Mystery: Opens Friday, April 2
Be among the first to experience our newest special exhibition, featuring nearly two dozen species of sharks and rays in galleries that celebrate their impact on human cultures around the world.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/sharks.asp>
Dia del Nino: April 25, Sunday
We'll celebrate the traditional Day of the Child with special family activities. Children ages 12 and under will be admitted free all day.
Our online calendar has details and more events.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_calendar.asp>
5. CONSERVATION IN ACTION: TAGGING GIANT TUNAS
Scientists from the Tuna Research and Conservation Center (TRCC) are battling record cold and gale-force winds off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, as they continue their efforts to tag and track Atlantic bluefin tunas. This marks the ninth year of the "Tag-A-Giant" program, which has successfully tagged nearly 700 large fish since it began. Another 16 bluefin were added to that total on the first day of fishing, before the team got blown out. By day three, 35 had been tagged.
The TRCC is a collaboration between the aquarium and Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station to educate the public about the conservation and biology of tunas. The Atlantic Tag-A-Giant program aims to understand the movements and behaviors of Atlantic bluefin tuna using sophisticated electronic tagging technologies. Scientists are learning where tunas migrate to feed and spawn, whether they return to spawning sites, and how much migration occurs between tunas from the Mediterranean, the eastern Atlantic and the western Atlantic. Their findings are having an impact on management of these remarkable creatures-- warm-blooded fish that can live 25 to 30 years, weigh half a ton or more and command prices approaching $200,000 apiece on the world market.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/cr/trcc.asp>
6. FREE OFFERS: GIFT STORE DISCOUNT, TORTOISE RAY
This month's Sea Notes specials include 10% off all posters and prints in the gift & bookstores, and free wallpaper of a tortoise ray from the Amazon basin, one of the animals from "Sharks: Myth and Mystery."
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_seanotes/vi_seanotes_specials.asp>
(Source: MBA's "Sea Notes" Press Release/Newsletter)
Look for three new juvenile medusafish in our "Exploring the Outer Bay" gallery. As juveniles, they swim among a jelly’s tentacles for protection; they're apparently immune to the sting. As they grow, they begin to eat their jelly host. Little is known about their lives, and we're the only aquarium in the world to display them.
You'll find several young purple-striped jellies in the Outer Bay galleries. Raised by our aquarists, they lack the distinctive purple stripes of the older jellies. Instead, they're translucent white with no stripes; slightly older ones are translucent with stripes.
Visit What’s New on our web site to learn about other new arrivals in our exhibits.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_whatsnew.asp>
2. NEW ON THE WEB: OUR 20TH ANNIVERSARY
Hard to believe, but it’s our 20th anniversary year. So much has happened since we opened our doors on October 20, 1984. You can find the highlights in a dynamic timeline that dates back to the earliest discussion of a Monterey Bay Aquarium--in 1914! There’s also a trivia quiz--and a place for you to share your favorite aquarium memories and photos. We'll have special programs and events throughout the year. Check our web site for details, and we'll keep you posted in Sea Notes.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/aa/celebrating.asp>
3. AT THE AQUARIUM: KEEPERS OF THE SHARKS
For more than a year, our aquarists have been caring for nearly two dozen species of sharks and rays in preparation for "Sharks: Myth and Mystery." When it opens April 2, we'll display animals from tropical and temperate waters, as well as freshwater species. It’s quite a challenge.
Some, like blacktip reef sharks, bamboo sharks and the cownose and thornback rays, are familiar to our staff. Others, like the Galapagos shark and the freshwater rays, have never been displayed here before. (With the Galapagos shark, it’s the first time one has been displayed outside Hawaii.) They all have different needs that aquarists have to address.
For example, scalloped hammerhead sharks, Galapagos sharks and pelagic rays need a long glide path to conserve energy as they swim. So we've designed a tropical reef exhibit that’s over 30 feet wide with a 17-foot-long viewing window. It contains nearly 20,000 gallons of sea water--larger than all but our four biggest permanent displays.
Water temperature is critical, and temperatures have to be fine-tuned for each display. Food is important, too. The diversity of species means a varied menu. Smaller sharks and rays are gentle enough to feed by hand, but aquarists use long poles with fish attached to feed the more aggressive species. The pelagic rays will be trained to recognize a target that, when presented by an aquarist, means it’s time to eat.
Preview the new exhibit online!
<http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/sharks.asp>
4. PROMOTIONS & EVENTS: FREE ADULT TICKET, SHARK DAYS, LOVE AT THE AQUARIUM, DIA DEL NINO
Here’s a deal too good to pass up. Starting January 24 and 25 with our "Sharks Days Celebration," visit us anytime through April 1, buy an adult admission ticket, and you'll get another adult ticket good for a return visit to see "Sharks: Myth and Mystery." The tickets are non-transferable and can be used to visit between April 2 and May 31. The offer is valid only with a paid adult admission.
Regardless, you won't want to miss our "Shark Days Celebration" this Saturday and Sunday, January 24 and 25. You'll have the chance to learn about these awesome creatures from the experts who care for them at the aquarium. Other highlights: special feeding presentations, hula dancers, crafts for kids, auditorium programs and prize drawings. You could win tickets to preview "Sharks: Myth and Mystery."
"Shark Days Celebration" is free with regular aquarium admission.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_events/vi_events_sharks.asp>
Love at the Aquarium, February 14, Saturday
On Valentine’s Day, love will be in the air and under water during a romantic evening of delectable tastings, dancing and surprising insights into the mating secrets of marine creatures. There’s an optional strolling dinner at 7 p.m. in the Outer Bay galleries with dessert, wines and live music. The DJ dance party starts at 8 p.m., with chocolate tastings and optional tastings of Monterey County wines.
Admission for the dinner and dance party is $85/person. The dance party with wine tasting is $45/person; without wine tasting, $35/person. Advance reservations required for dinner. Contact Event Sales at (831) 647-6877, or by e-mail at mailto:eventsales@mbayaq.org.
Also optional: Bring your Valentine and enjoy Passport Weekend in Monterey County's wine country from Feb. 13-15, with tastings, entertainment, gourmet treats and prize drawings.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_promotions.asp>
<http://www.montereywines.org/events_passport.html>
Sharks: Myth & Mystery: Opens Friday, April 2
Be among the first to experience our newest special exhibition, featuring nearly two dozen species of sharks and rays in galleries that celebrate their impact on human cultures around the world.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/sharks.asp>
Dia del Nino: April 25, Sunday
We'll celebrate the traditional Day of the Child with special family activities. Children ages 12 and under will be admitted free all day.
Our online calendar has details and more events.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_aquarium/vi_aq_calendar.asp>
5. CONSERVATION IN ACTION: TAGGING GIANT TUNAS
Scientists from the Tuna Research and Conservation Center (TRCC) are battling record cold and gale-force winds off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, as they continue their efforts to tag and track Atlantic bluefin tunas. This marks the ninth year of the "Tag-A-Giant" program, which has successfully tagged nearly 700 large fish since it began. Another 16 bluefin were added to that total on the first day of fishing, before the team got blown out. By day three, 35 had been tagged.
The TRCC is a collaboration between the aquarium and Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station to educate the public about the conservation and biology of tunas. The Atlantic Tag-A-Giant program aims to understand the movements and behaviors of Atlantic bluefin tuna using sophisticated electronic tagging technologies. Scientists are learning where tunas migrate to feed and spawn, whether they return to spawning sites, and how much migration occurs between tunas from the Mediterranean, the eastern Atlantic and the western Atlantic. Their findings are having an impact on management of these remarkable creatures-- warm-blooded fish that can live 25 to 30 years, weigh half a ton or more and command prices approaching $200,000 apiece on the world market.
<http://www.mbayaq.org/cr/trcc.asp>
6. FREE OFFERS: GIFT STORE DISCOUNT, TORTOISE RAY
This month's Sea Notes specials include 10% off all posters and prints in the gift & bookstores, and free wallpaper of a tortoise ray from the Amazon basin, one of the animals from "Sharks: Myth and Mystery."
<http://www.mbayaq.org/vi/vi_seanotes/vi_seanotes_specials.asp>
(Source: MBA's "Sea Notes" Press Release/Newsletter)