Persephone
Well-Known Member
I went late March. They were signed but to be honest I’m really not sure that I saw them. Just a quarter centimeter tall patch of fuzz on the bone.
Monterey Bay Aquarium Major deep sea animal exhibit coming to MBA
- Thread starter DavidBrown
- Start date
I went late March. They were signed but to be honest I’m really not sure that I saw them. Just a quarter centimeter tall patch of fuzz on the bone.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Yeah doesn’t look like they have any on exhibit presently unfortunately. The previous colony seemed to only live 2 months and then all died off, considering how small the bones are, its not a big surprise. Hopefully they get some back before you go, I was also hoping to go down next month.
Spoke with someone I know on staff and he says that as far as hes aware, they still have the Big Roughy. Perhaps they just forgot to switch the signs, since theres a duplicate Thornyhead sign on the left. Honestly, the Benthic collection seems to be a bit sparse right now. I don't see why they'd give the Predatory Tunicates their own tank, and the Basket Stars and Lumpfish have been on exhibit since opening, nothing has taken their spot yet. Hopefully that wait pays off.
I should mention that about 90 species have been exhibited, but (at least at opening) they have 250 species signs already produced, so theres so much stuff that we haven't seen yet. Hopefully we'll see some switch ups soon since like i said, some of these species have been on exhibit since opening, but still very excited to see what's next.
Last edited:
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Went back through some MBARI publications from last year, and a couple of corrections:
One thing they said I can share, though, is that they've raised Snailfish for exhibit from egg to juvenile/sub-adult. I'm assuming the eggs came from Japan or they were found on a local collection trip, but that's another achievement for them, I'm pretty sure, definitely US aquarium-wise. They've exhibited Salmon Snailfish juveniles before so I'm assuming they're talking about that species, since the Arbiter Snailfish were adults (though one did look like it was gravid last time I saw it)
I'm not allowed to speak of anything else, but the next couple of species rotations should be incredibly exciting.
These are actually confirmed to be an undescribed species of Nausithoe, I think it was mentioned previously in the thread but I forgot about it. So I'll have to update it on the updated version when I do that.
Definitely Nanomia septata, I'll attach an image at the bottom that shows the geographical regions of each species, since it's pretty interesting.
They aren't sure of where the Barrelfish was acquired from, but he can find out (since he technically doesn't work on the animal husbandry side of Into the Deep)
One thing they said I can share, though, is that they've raised Snailfish for exhibit from egg to juvenile/sub-adult. I'm assuming the eggs came from Japan or they were found on a local collection trip, but that's another achievement for them, I'm pretty sure, definitely US aquarium-wise. They've exhibited Salmon Snailfish juveniles before so I'm assuming they're talking about that species, since the Arbiter Snailfish were adults (though one did look like it was gravid last time I saw it)
I'm not allowed to speak of anything else, but the next couple of species rotations should be incredibly exciting.
Attachments
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Well a nice update to this, I found a video from today from a visitor, and assuming it was recorded relatively recently, the Big Roughy actually replaced the Lumpfish in the Seamount gallery, and it looks like they also have at least 2 of them. The lighting for them is brighter than what they had for the Lumpfish oddly enough, but hopefully they'll still be there so I can get some nice pictures. I wonder if they're acquiring more, but they do have their own signage, which the person did take a picture of, thankfully.
Attachments
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
it appears the Lumpfish are now back on exhibit, I'm guessing it's the same tank. Assuming the Roughy are behind the scenes again, unless they bent the rules and added them to another Seamount exhibit (I would love if they did that)
No other updates I can find, I'm surprised the Sea Angels have been on exhibit for this long since they're normally a Spring only species. I'm hoping the Bumpy Jellies might make a return soon, since the last time they were on exhibit was early September, which is when I'll be there.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Guessing this is another world first achievement for MBA, but MBARI recently put out this video highlighting the Predatory Tunicates, and mention that MBA is actually in the process of culturing them. I don't believe they've completed the life cycle yet, but they're getting them to spawn and raising the babies so far which is really awesome.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
I'll be at the Aquarium again tomorrow so fingers crossed a new midwater rotation happens since this group of species has been on exhibit for a pretty long time now, but while there isn't really anything new, here are some things I noticed:
- There's a Brisingid Star in the Predatory Tunicates Tank, just 1 though. Was still really neat to see it, and my phone was able to correct the brightness internally so I got a good picture (couldn't get it with my camera since its on the wall)
- There's some sort of the Thornyhead species in the Basket Star tank (photo below)
- The Fragile Pink Urchins and Red Hippasteria Stars are definitely gone from the Whalefall Tank, I think their signage was removed a while ago but I don't see any trace of them.
- No matter how hard I've looked so far, I don't see the Barrelfish anywhere. Its either hiding in a corner like the Roughy did, or is hiding in the whale skeleton which is odd since I thought they were more active. Hopefully i'll get a glimpse sometime before I leave
Attachments
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
^^ (Via @Veno in the main MBA news thread)
I was thinking we were overdue for some Into the Deep news. I did hear a rumor about this a while ago but wasn't sure how much merit there was to it. Super happy to see that they've debuted now (except im just not there to see them
). I think this marks the 1st time in the US the species has been exhibited.I can't say much obviously but 1 thing I'm okay to say is the Aquarium is doing a lot of work with Snailfish, especially breeding them. Not sure what species exactly but I believe this now marks 3 species (Salmon, Arbiter, and Rough/Pink-bearded). Super excited to see what's next.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Short video the Aquarium posted of the Snailfish / their official debut announcement (I wish they did more of these announcements)^^ (Via @Veno in the main MBA news thread)
I was thinking we were overdue for some Into the Deep news. I did hear a rumor about this a while ago but wasn't sure how much merit there was to it. Super happy to see that they've debuted now (except im just not there to see them
I can't say much obviously but 1 thing I'm okay to say is the Aquarium is doing a lot of work with Snailfish, especially breeding them. Not sure what species exactly but I believe this now marks 3 species (Salmon, Arbiter, and Rough/Pink-bearded). Super excited to see what's next.
Monterey Bay Aquarium on Instagram: " G-g-ghost? Nope, s-s-snailfish! Meet the mesmerizing new addition to our Into the Deep/En lo Profundo exhibit, rough snailfish! These ethereal charmers live in the benthic zone, a scientific term for the seafloor. They use frilly fins on their chins to feel for prey like small crustaceans. So don’t worry if you see a snailfish wriggling in place on exhibit—they’re just snacking or resting on the rocks like they would in their benthic home! Fall’s the perfect time to cozy up to snailfish and other wondrous deep-sea animals. Plan your visit to our Into the Deep/En lo Profundo exhibit at the link in our bio! #Monterey Bay Aquarium #IntoTheDeep #CozyDeepSeaVibes #WigglingSnackingAndNapping #WhatALife #ComeSayHiToTheSnailfish"
Is this the first display of C. trachysoma outside of Asia? I know they're displayed in a couple aquaria in Japan but not aware of any elsewhere.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
I believe so, at least in the US. I'm not sure how they're getting them to breed so rapidly (they might just have large egg numbers) but I'm pretty sure this will not be the last time they'll be on exhibit if I had to assume.
(Also to note, I think based off the rock work, they replaced the Japanese Porcupine Crabs)
Speaking of Japan, I know you're more well versed with the Aquariums there, what do you think the likelihood of them ever bringing over some Sharks would be? @Local_Shark and I were just discussing this, the Elephantfish being the only Elasmobranchs in the entire gallery is kind of surprising. The old exhibit in the 90's had Filetail Catsharks and Spotted Ratfish which are local species, but even those weren't brought back (bummer about the Catsharks). The 2 species that seem to be present at all the Aquariums in Japan that MBA collabs with were the Japanese Sawshark (Pristiophorus japonicus) and the Mandarin Dogfish (Cirrhigaleus barbifer), the Sawsharks have been bred by Okinawa-Churami too so they are definitely suitable for captivity, it just has to be a matter of getting them from Japan to the US if I had to guess. They clearly have the capabilities of transporting smaller and medium sized Deep-Sea fishes between the two countries, but it doesn't seem like they've made it to the smaller Sharks yet (or there are other logistics preventing them) which is a bummer
Last edited:
Admittedly I'm not terribly knowledgeable on the cartilaginous side of things, but MBA keeping some of the smaller deepwater sharks definitely seems feasible. As you said, Japanese Sawsharks would be a good option as they seem to be relatively common in Japanese facilities and take to captive life well. I don't think Mandarin Dogfish is quite as common but there are still a good number of facilities keeping them.
Perhaps MBA should get in touch with Aquamarine Fukushima! Aquamarine also keeps quite a few snailfish species (which I believe they collect mostly from Hokkaido and further north), so some collaboration between the two facilities would be interesting!
Well, I suppose that depends on your definition of large
I'd consider sawsharks medium at best, but of course much of that length is just rostrum.
Local_Shark
Well-Known Member
I would say sawsharks definitely classify as small to medium sharks, especially if they were to get babies/juveniles from one of the facilities that breeds them. On average they don’t get much bigger than 3 feet, and as @DaLilFishie said much of that is rostrum lol. My recommendation would be to go that route, as they’re probably a lot easier to transport when they’re small; Monterey is also well positioned to do it as they’d probably have the shortest flight from Japan vs any other American aquarium. No aquarium that I know of in America has ever exhibited a sawshark, they’re an incredibly ignored family here for whatever reason. I’d love to see a Mandarin dogfish, but unfortunately they may simply be too large and mobile for ITD’s biggest tank, whereas sawsharks are fairly sedentary generally.
(Of course they could just build another tank in the ITD wing that’s bigger and exclusively for weird elasmos…
lol. Though I suppose we’re still not sure if it’s gonna be a permanent exhibit yet are we)
Last edited:
The marine life supplier that sent some Snailfish to MBA posted on social media that they have several young sawsharks, so depending on MBA’s interest, those could possibly be sent as well.
However, Japanese swellshark would be a more realistic option, as it’s easier to keep and less of a deep-sea species, making transport simpler. In fact, it’s also on display at “Deep Sea Zone” in Singapore.
On the other hand, the Mandarin dogfish is rarely caught, so suppliers usually don’t handle them. The individual at Toba Aquarium has been alive for over 30 years, likely making it the longest-living deep-sea shark in captivity, but compared to the two species above, it’s more delicate and difficult to transport.
However, Japanese swellshark would be a more realistic option, as it’s easier to keep and less of a deep-sea species, making transport simpler. In fact, it’s also on display at “Deep Sea Zone” in Singapore.
On the other hand, the Mandarin dogfish is rarely caught, so suppliers usually don’t handle them. The individual at Toba Aquarium has been alive for over 30 years, likely making it the longest-living deep-sea shark in captivity, but compared to the two species above, it’s more delicate and difficult to transport.
Local_Shark
Well-Known Member
Fascinating insights @Veno - many thanks! I don’t know if a Japanese swell shark would be their first choice, mostly because they already have a great many of our classic swell sharks here in California (and honestly the average aquarium visitor likely wouldn’t be able to tell the difference). But I certainly would be happy for those to come here lol. That info about the Mandarin dogfish is fascinating too, I should very much like to see one someday.
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping
Well-Known Member
Man I hope so, those Barred Snailfish in particular would be amazing to see in person. From what I was told (this part was said in a public chat so it should be okay), the Snailfish babies when they hatch are essentially mini versions of the adults, and much larger than other juvenile fish so they already eat the same stuff as the adults (just smaller sized portions). "Extremely successful" is how they described how their Snailfish breeding is going (at least in regards to the Rough Snailfish). If only I could do a day trip down there just to see the Roughs but the nearest "big" airport is about an hour and half away. Maybe I'll get an opportunity.
Yeah I don't think we've gotten 100% confirmation yet, but there's just no way they won't make it a permanent exhibit in my mind at this point. The list of species they're achieving longevity (couple months to a year) with on exhibit, let alone the list of species they're actually culturing/breeding that just keeps on growing, I feel like they have a good lineup of species that can be on exhibit permanently now (with the rare appearance of whatever they bring back from the Monterey Canyon). Especially since they did basically get rid of the entire wall that seperated what used to be the Viva Baja exhibit and the bottom viewing of the Open Sea tank to make that transition/entrance for Into the Deep, I wouldn't think they'd want to rebuild that again lol.(Of course they could just build another tank in the ITD wing that’s bigger and exclusively for weird elasmos…
I'll have to go back and find the exact clip, but I swear I remember someone higher up on staff who said they do have leftover budget that wasn't used for "if we want to add or change anything in the future" (I don't know if that was the exact quote but it sounded like they were saving it). I think the wall adjacent to the Whalefall tank has a bunch of filtration and stuff so I don't think a new tank could go there, but I could see them possibly expanding the current Whalefall tank. Next Spring is going to be the 4 year anniversary of ITD (already? wow) and if the current plan was to have it open for 8 years, I hope they do say something about it's status since it'd be the "halfway mark" of it's runtime.
ooo, you're getting my hopes up for sure lol. I didn't know they work with independent suppliers but that does open up the opportunities for different species I would think. The Whalefall tank in particular has signage slots for 9 species, last time I visited in August there were only 7 in the tank so they had to use some duplicate signage for the Thornyheads. Hopefully the Sawsharks could potentially be one of those species that could take up the space. Even if it's just 2, I would love to see some.
Local_Shark
Well-Known Member
It would just be a shame to eliminate such a revolutionary and really fun exhibit. There really is nothing like it anywhere else in the United States. I hope that they decide ultimately to just keep it around for good, I think they would find it very economically worthwhile to do so and it would continue to educate all manner of visitors about such a little understood environment.