Dubai Free Aquarium

I went to this Aquarium in late June of this year (2011). It is not exactly free. It is located in the heart of the Dubai Mall, the world's largest mall. Right there, across from many stores is the world's largest aquarium window, a full 3 stories tall and maybe 60-80 feet wide. Behind this glass is the Aquarium's main feature, an Ocean tank filled with sharks, rays, and many other large ocean fish.

But this is just to whet the appetite. For a fare of about $15, visitors can go through a glass tube through the middle of this huge ocean tank. They then go upstairs to a long trek passing many aquatic exhibits on both sides. Species I remember included Amazon fish, archerfish, rare otters, nutrias, smaller sharks, jellyfish, and penguins -- and much more. For an extra fee, you can ride in a glass-bottomed boat over the top of the ocean tank, and they give you food to feed fish near the top.
 
KCZooFan said:
Do you remember the otter or penguin species?
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The aquarium has the world's largest acryclic panel, and it appears to be spectacular from the images that are readily available online. The website lists Humboldt penguins but it does not give the species of otter.
 
snowleopard said:
The aquarium has the world's largest acryclic panel, and it appears to be spectacular from the images that are readily available online. The website lists Humboldt penguins but it does not give the species of otter.
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Thanks for the help on the penguins, SL. I have all of the species on a video disk somewhere. I did remember that the penguins are warm weather penguins (not Antarctic). As for the otters, I think they are Asian small-clawed otters.

The giant acrylic panel is spectacular! There's a Guinness Book of World Records plaque there, signifying its world's largest status. The view of it and its creatures is immensely popular. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of Dubai locales and tourists standing in front of it, watching the animals, taking pictures, and trying to decide if they want to put down the $15-$20 for a more detailed tour of the Aquarium.

One experience I had in the upstairs portion of the Aquarium that I've never had before: At the archerfish exhibit, the tank has a low glass wall, so you (if you are moderately tall) can look over the top. I did this and -- Pow! one of the archerfish spit a high-powered spray of water and nailed me, right in the eye! While it kind of hurt, I was really intrigued by this, so I rested my chin on the top of the glass and sure enough, many more archerfish nailed me! Since they didn't get me in the eye again, this was genuinely fun!
 
Was at this aquarium last year-two penguin exhibits...definitely Gentoos,then either Humboldt or African[too lazy to go looking for my notebook].Very dissapointed to see Mekong Giant Catfish labelled but they have never been there.And it isnt really free either unless you just want a distant view of the big tank.ANyhuis did you do the fabulous Arabian Wildlife Centre at Sharjah?...one of the worlds great specialist collections-and Dubai Zoo,a dump but with Gorillas labelled Eastern Lowland[!] tho i think not.Al-Ain?Another interesting zoo-nearly as hot over there as Kansas this summer!
 
Tim Brown said:
ANyhuis did you do the fabulous Arabian Wildlife Centre at Sharjah?...one of the worlds great specialist collections-and ....Al-Ain?Another interesting zoo-nearly as hot over there as Kansas this summer!
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I did not get to Sharjah, as I had not heard of such high acclaim of it before. I did, however, tour the Al Ain Zoo. It was very interesting, and quite good. I've heard (and I believe it) that this is probably the best Zoo in the Middle East. Was the first zoo I've ever been to with its own house of worship inside (a mosque). The hours were also very interesting -- it's open from 16:00 to 22:00 in the brutally hot summer. On the day we were there it was 108F (42C).
 
The article posted by Zooplantman mentions 400 sharks and stingrays...is that accurate? The info about the leak is hilarious, as I can just imagine shoppers pulling up their pants and heading home!
 
The best zoo in the Middle East and one of the worlds most unique[the public never go outdoors] is the Arabian Wildlife Centre at Sharjah PLUS the breeding centre next door has off-exhibit Arabian Tahrs[virtually unknown in captivity].Sharjahs new aquarium is pretty good as well.
 
Tim Brown said:
The best zoo in the Middle East and one of the worlds most unique[the public never go outdoors] is the Arabian Wildlife Centre at Sharjah PLUS the breeding centre next door has off-exhibit Arabian Tahrs[virtually unknown in captivity].Sharjahs new aquarium is pretty good as well.
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Sorry, Tim, but I would have a hard time putting a zoo that is completely indoors and only features animals specific to one place on Earth (Arabia) over a massive 400-hectare Zoo (Al Ain) which displays animals from all over the globe.

That being said, the Sharjah Arabian Wildlife Centre indeed looks and sounds very interesting and I will try to get there on my next trip to Dubai (perhaps in December).
 
Tim Brown said:
The best zoo in the Middle East and one of the worlds most unique[the public never go outdoors] is the Arabian Wildlife Centre at Sharjah PLUS the breeding centre next door has off-exhibit Arabian Tahrs[virtually unknown in captivity].Sharjahs new aquarium is pretty good as well.
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Expect to see new aquariums in Doha and Riyadh perhaps in 5 years as well
 
Ah ANyhuis,read carefully..i didnt say that the zoo is indoors rather that the public never go outside-there is a difference.The larger species are all outdoors but a person doesnt venture into that searing heat to experience them.And i think that the specialisation in Arabian fauna makes for a very worthwhile change from some of the species stewing in the Al Ain cooker..and that bird house there, Sharjahs is similar only with authentic species instead of some of the brightly coloured nonsense which Al Ain have thrown into theirs.However the plans for the future look much more sensible..lets hope they do a good job.Did you manage to sneak a look at their horrible disused old ape house?As for things you wont see anywhere else Sharjah is full of them while Al Ain has only Houbara Bustard.
 
@Tim Brown:
The idea that the entire Zoo is indoors comes from the internet, where the description I read makes it sound like absolutely everything is indoors.

As for which is "best" (Al Ain or Sharjah), that goes back to the differing opinions on how to rate such things. I would venture that to the locals, Al Ain has more appeal, as they would be able to see animals from around the world there. But I could fully see the possibility that to tourists from outside the UAE, Sharjah might have more appeal, as it's a chance to see the unique animals from the native area.
 
ANyhuis of course you are right but the zoo beauty of Sharjah is its Blanfords Foxes,its room full of various species[over 20]of mice and gerbils,its Arabian Leopards[ssp nimr],its reptiles,its birds,fish found in no other zoo or aquarium...all shown in exquisite habitats far in advance of AL Ain to be honest.Lets see what happens to those big plans at AL Ain but as for a comparison one zoo is rather special the other rather average.you will guess which one i think is which!
 
Hey, don't get me wrong -- I'm very intrigued to go see Sharjah.

But sorry, I did not find Al Ain to be "average". When asked how I'd rate it, I told a friend (SnowLeopard) that if it were in Europe, I'd put the Al Ain Zoo in the Top 30.

As for their "future plans", when I was there (in late June), the entire side of the Zoo was a construction zone. They have some very large new exhibits being built, as we speak.
 
Oo..Al Ain wouldnt make my top 100 in Europe im afraid..many of those windows-in-the-side of false rockwork exhibits were really lacking-in both imagination and cage furniture.And both the reptile and bird houses were all over the place,really missing the expert loving touches which make a difference,as was the nocturnal house to be honest.Please try and get to Sharjah to see the difference im trying to [poorly]describe in a few words.In fact im struggling to think of anything i REALLY liked at Al Ain although i enjoyed my day there.Mind you i enjoy virtually any zoo or zoological situation.
 
Tim Brown said:
Very dissapointed to see Mekong Giant Catfish labelled but they have never been there.
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Mystery solved! I can finally sleep in peace!

When I visited at the end of 2011, I also found Mekong Giant Catfish (and giant freshwater stingrays) labelled but absent. The only person I could ask about the catfish was at the other end of the aquarium, but he assured me that they were present and described the tank that they lived in. When I went back to this tank, I noticed a few fish I hadn't seen earlier but didn't know where they'd been hiding. The juiciest of these were a giant barb (which I was happy to see) and a large catfish (but definitely not a Pangasianodon). I thought it was a Wallago sp., but was disappointed not to see any trace of a Pangasianodon. Despite my efforts, I couldn't work out where it would be hiding, and had to give up my hunt. Just this evening, it all clicked. I didn't know (but it makes sense) that a common name for Wallago catfishes is 'giant Mekong catfish'. So although it's not what we expected, this animal is there!

If anyone wants to have a go at identifying the species, I'd be happy to put up a blurry photo. Internet searches don't seem reliable enough with this one.
 
devilfish said:
If anyone wants to have a go at identifying the species, I'd be happy to put up a blurry photo. Internet searches don't seem reliable enough with this one.
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sure, why not, it can't hurt. Just attach it as a thumbnail on here maybe? Or in the To Be Identified part of the gallery.
 
Here it is - immortalised in two blurry photos. I think it's more likely to be W. attu or W. micropogon, but the number of mislabelled photos online makes further ID quite difficult.
 

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