Aquarium of the Pacific (Long Beach, CA) -- September 2015

DAY FOUR, PART TWO (22 September 2015):

Our destination wasn’t too far from Shoreline Village, but the GPS unit sent us to the parking lot right before we should’ve gone for our destination.  A quick drive around the area figured that out, as there weren’t very good signs to direct us to the correct parking garage.  Still, we’d arrived at the Aquarium of the Pacific.

Upon entering the facility, the first I noticed was the whale suspended overhead.  Want to talk about something that grabs your attention.  Whales are the largest mammals on the planet, and seeing one over your head really puts that into perspective.

The aquarium has a long central corridor with galleries on either side, although the main entrances to those are located on the second floor.  The two main galleries focused on the northern Pacific Ocean, and the tropical region.  There were smaller sections for the southern Pacific, and marine mammals.

One of the exhibits we found the most fascinating were the jellyfish.  There are many species present of these fabulous creatures, and they’re so unlike anything else we have on our planet.  We want to go looking for alien life on other planets, yet you can’t get something more alien than this.

And to think about what other interesting things nature has come up, look no further than the sea dragon.  I’d never seen one of these before, and could see why they could be mistaken for a branch floating in the water.  Like their sea horse relatives, the males carry and give birth to the young.

It was nice to stop and look at the fish swimming by in the tanks, and sometimes it was just as interesting to look at all the various colors and shapes of the corals.  Being able to maintain living coral is difficult due to factors like light and temperature sensitivity, so it’s impressive this exhibit is present.

I sent this picture to a couple of my friends telling them I’d found a face-hugger.  Since when I go on these trips, no one really knows where I am or what I’m seeing until after, so sending out strange random pictures is fun.

After passing the otter enclosure, the aquarium opens to an outdoor section with a penguin habitat…

… and a section where guests were allowed to reach out and touch a ray.  With a light two-finger touch, I felt the leathery-skin as the critter glided by.

There’s also animal shows which happen throughout the day, as well as the Ocean Theatre to view 3D and 4D movies, and a kiosk at the Ocean Science Center showing presentations from the NOAA.  The guide book which comes with the admission has a good map, as well as a visual guide for the animals within the facility.

More Information on Places Visited or Mentioned:

Shoreline Village:  http://www.shorelinevillage.com/

Aquarium of the Pacific:  http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/

NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration):  http://www.noaa.gov/

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