Animals
Mystic Aquarium holds four beluga whales, four Steller sea lions, six California sea lions, 4 harbor seals, a large colony of African black-footed penguins, sea stars, unicorn fish, blue tang, octopus, leopard shark, bamboo sharks, sheepshead fish, horn sharks, sea turtles, clownfish and other oceanic creatures. As part of its conservation work, it is among the first aquariums to attempt artificial insemination of a beluga whale, in order to increase breeding in captivity.
Within the aquarium, encounter programs are offered to visitors for an additional fee. For instance, the penguin encounter programs allow visitors to get close to one of the African Penguins; visitors may also touch and stand in the water with a beluga whale. In summer, visitors may touchencounter where you are able to touch and stand in the water with a whale. Also, visitors may feed and touch the sting rays in a special pool.
Between September 2008 and May 2009, the aquarium hosted several marine mammals from the Shedd Aquarium while that institution was undergoing renovation to its marine mammal habitat.
The National Geographic Society's Crittercam exhibit is at the aquarium as of Feb 2011.
Read more about this topic: Mystic Aquarium & Institute For Exploration
Famous quotes containing the word animals:
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—Sarah N. Cleghorn (1976–1959)
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