I visited SEA LIFE Sunshine Coast today. Some notes from my visit:
-As imagined, the new Little Penguins were a very popular exhibit with the visitors. Considering that the aquarium has limited space, I am glad they opted for this species rather than creating a cramped exhibit for Kings and Gentoos. I was hoping the aquarium would mix the penguins with some cool fish like Melbourne Zoo does with leatherjacket or SEA LIFE Sydney does with Port Jackson Sharks, but all I saw in the tank with them was a goatfish and two silvery fish that need to be identified. Edit: The two silvery fish were identified as a Pin-spotted Spinefoot (
Siganus margarituferus) and Paradise Threadfin Bream (
Pentapodus paradiseus).
-Since my last visit about a year ago the aquarium has lost most of their freshwater species - about 20-30 species all up - which is very disappointing and unfortunate. They no longer have any of the following species; Black Pacu, Red-tailed Catfish [this individual was my favourite fish in the entire aquarium:
Red-tailed Catfish (Phractocephalus hemioliopterus) - ZooChat], Giant Pangasius, Cigar Shark, Giant Gourami, Alligator Gar, Long-nosed Gar, Butterfly Peacock Bass, Motoro Stingray, Silver Hatchetfish, Altum Angelfish, Freshwater Crocodile, Pig-nosed Turtle, several additional native turtle species, Eel-tailed Catfish, Fork-tailed Catfish, a few species of cichlid like the huge group of Red Devils, Venustus, Electric Yellow and Malawi Blue Dolphin, and a handful of tetra species. All of this moved out for the penguins! The aquarium is just not the same and feels very stark without them.
-The remainder of the ‘Freshwater Streams’ zone now consists of only four tanks containing the leftovers and a few new additions. Tank one [which formerly housed the hatchetfish, clown panchax and cherry shrimp with delicate plantings] is now a mix of Congo Tetra, Celebes Rainbowfish and Peacock Gudgeon. A few other small catfish species were signed for this tank and there was also a fascinating addition that caught my eye – an African Butterflyfish (
Pantodon buchholzi). The second tank hasn’t changed much – an attractive assortment of barbs and rasboras. I actually really liked the third tank which now contains a large group (100 +) of Cardinal Tetras, Discus for pops of colour and a huge Common Plecostomus. You don’t often get to see large groups of tetras together and I thought it was a very effective display. The final tank was a bit of a let-down – they replaced the African cichlids with Goldfish…
-The frogs are now displayed downstairs in the Billabong area near the lungfish/archerfish tank. Glad to see they are still there. Thankfully, the Octanauts area with all the inadequate tanks, is gone and has been replaced with a simple display about penguins. The axolotls have been moved into a new (admittedly only slightly larger) tank next to the frogs.
-On a more positive note I was glad to see the two species of Cowfish – Striped (
Aracana aurita) and Ornate (
Aracana ornata) are still on-display. They are such lovely fish.
-The Ornate Wobbegong that was born last week marks only the second time the aquarium has ever bred the species. The first time was about ten years ago.
-My favourite saltwater tank (one of the few tanks remaining from pre-Sea Life days) is looking wonderful. I saw lots of showy fish especially the larger tangs and a particularly active Yellowtail Coris (
Coris gaimard).
I will post a full species list in a separate thread exhibit by exhibit over the next couple of days.
More photos of the exhibits and some of the animals can be found here:
Underwater World - ZooChat
