Monterey Bay Aquarium Major deep sea animal exhibit coming to MBA

What are the chances that they are going to get another vampire squid to put on exhibit?
Unfortunately I'd say extremely slim. It hasn't been brought up in a while but the last time I asked, it mainly has to do with how often they encounter them in the wild. Apparently they only come across Vampire Squids on rare occasions, and they don't bother collecting them because of that (also because they tend to have a set list of species they want to collect when going out at sea, they said it's very rare that they go "that's rare / interesting, let's collect it" I was told). I know an Aquarium in Japan tried keeping a Vampire Squid last year, buuut I think we all know how that usually goes... I'd love if MBA were to try again, maybe if MBARI needs them to keep one alive for research purposes. I'd 100% book a same day flight down there if they happen to get one lol.

Honestly if I had to bet, if any deep-sea cephs are going to make an appearance in the near future, it might be the Flapjack Octopuses. During Tentacles tenure, they were the most kept deep-sea ceph (I believe the number of individuals was between 18 to 25 possibly, somewhere in the low 20's at least). I'd imagine they're the species the Aquarium has the most work with, plus they're mainly benthic so as long as they're not extremely stressed, they could be fine in one of the benthic gallery tanks.
 
A little repetitive at this point but it looks like the Tower Jellies (Neoturris spp.) are back on exhibit
From my understanding, the Purple Lipped Jellies (Earlaria pupurea) have been on exhibit for over a year at this point. It seems like there hasn't been anything worth putting on exhibit to replace them as they are in the largest Midwater Tank. Can't wait to see what takes their spot.

At least for the Midwater Gallery since it changes the most often, I believe this is the pattern that has developed:
Species the Aquarium cultures (on exhibit most often)
  • Mauve Stingers
  • Purple Lipped Jellies
  • Tower Jellies
  • Common Siphonophores
  • Lobed Comb Jellies (usually as a placeholder)
Species that are collected from the wild, but exhibit very frequently / all the time
  • Bloody Belly Comb Jellies (exhibit posterchild)
  • "Red X" Comb Jellies (undescribed species used to show the Aquarium's research)
  • Sea Angels (only in early Spring when they show up in the bay)
  • Red Spot Comb Jellies (have been on exhibit over 4 times I think now)
Everything else has only been on exhibit once or twice to my knowledge. Besides the Snow Globe Jellies and Slipper Lobster Larvae (sometimes on exhibit with the Mauve Stingers) which I believe are at 3 exhibit appearances. Species such as the Red Paper Lantern Jellies, Bumpy Jellies, and Rhizophyza Siphonophores, etc are at 2 appearances. The Dinner Plate Jelly, Barrel Amiphods, Balloon Worms, Chandelier Jellies, etc etc haven't made another appearance since their initial exhibit appearance.
There are also other species the aquarium has been successful in keeping, they just haven't made their way onto exhibit yet like the Giant Red Mysids (they like to stick to the sides of the tank walls) and Beaded Comb Jellies (Euplokamis sp.) which I'm not sure why those haven't gone on exhibit even once yet since the Aquarium did have an F3 generation in the back so they're successful at culturing them.

Basically what I'm trying to say is, it seems like the Aquarium has found a solid rotation of species they can rely on to display year-round, with the occasional "World First" species popping up here and there based on collection trips. Though I feel like it does get a little repetitive when I say "the Mauve Stingers are back on exhibit again" as an example. Hopefully we get another "World First" soon, or even just a new species that hasn't been on exhibit yet. Especially since they should've wrapped up those 3 collection trips from the end of last year, but nothing particularly new has gone on exhibit since then. With warmer weather around the corner, that should hopefully mean more plankton blooms which means more Jellies specifically and other filter feeders popping up in all levels of the Bay, so we could see more frequent rotations or new species coming soon (fingers crossed)
 
Bloody Belly Comb Jellies (exhibit posterchild)

No success in raising them yet then I take it? I remember hearing the aquarium has successfully spawned them but rearing failed.

Basically what I'm trying to say is, it seems like the Aquarium has found a solid rotation of species they can rely on to display year-round, with the occasional "World First" species popping up here and there based on collection trips.

It makes sense that they're subsequently making a minimal rotation of species they can count on, I imagine it's not easy tailoring exhibits to meet the species' needs each time they swap out. I suspect though that not too many world firsts/oddballs will pop up going forwards, if the pattern of previous exhibits like Tentacles is anything to go by. It tends to dwindle to what they can reliably display rather than constantly inserting new rare species. Given Into the Deep is permanent I don't doubt there will be the occasional oddity from time to time, but I'll be surprised if there's significant shake up to the displays for now.
 
Species that are collected from the wild, but exhibit very frequently / all the time
I forgot to mention the Abyssal Beroe Comb Jellies that have also been on exhibit for months at a time, those are a pretty stable rotation species so far too.
No success in raising them yet then I take it? I remember hearing the aquarium has successfully spawned them but rearing failed.
Correct, I think they had 1 spawn but couldn't raise the larvae. At least it's a step, I have faith they'll crack the entire life cycle in a few years. Also those Undescribed "Amber Bloody Bellies" they call them that have been on exhibit a few times, those would be incredible to see cultured.
It makes sense that they're subsequently making a minimal rotation of species they can count on, I imagine it's not easy tailoring exhibits to meet the species' needs each time they swap out. I suspect though that not too many world firsts/oddballs will pop up going forwards, if the pattern of previous exhibits like Tentacles is anything to go by. It tends to dwindle to what they can reliably display rather than constantly inserting new rare species. Given Into the Deep is permanent I don't doubt there will be the occasional oddity from time to time, but I'll be surprised if there's significant shake up to the displays for now.
Yeah, I really wish the Aquarium would publicly clarify if Into the Deep is actually a permanent exhibit now. The last news I heard of it being a permanent exhibit was from the Atlas Obscura article, and that the exhibit page on the website lists it as just "Exhibit" rather than "Special Exhibit". Unless they make a giant leap in the equipment development side that would need them to close down the exhibit and renovate the back areas for the tanks, I do hope they've changed their minds and make this permanent. It's arguably the best Deep-Sea exhibit to date (no shade towards Japan, but at least Monterey Bay is able to keep a majority of the animals alive for long periods of time). IMO only Okinawa's Deep-Sea collection rivals it since they do have an incredible Deep-Sea invert and Elasombranch collection we haven't seen yet at Monterey Bay. But I'm also more of a Jelly guy and Monterey Bay excels more at that. Speaking of Japan, I know the Aquarium has connections to multiple Japan Aquariums which is how they've gotten some of their Deep-Sea species (the Salmon Snailfish and Abyssal Comb Jellies as an example), I'd honestly love to see more Deep-Sea fish from Japan like the John Dory (Zeus faber) which was actually used on some Into the Deep advertisement so I'd imagine they've worked with the species before. Boarfish from the genus Antigonia or some Deep-Sea Gurnard species they have in Japan would also be cool. I just love to scheme and think about what they could possibly bring in
 
Yeah, I really wish the Aquarium would publicly clarify if Into the Deep is actually a permanent exhibit now. The last news I heard of it being a permanent exhibit was from the Atlas Obscura article, and that the exhibit page on the website lists it as just "Exhibit" rather than "Special Exhibit". Unless they make a giant leap in the equipment development side that would need them to close down the exhibit and renovate the back areas for the tanks, I do hope they've changed their minds and make this permanent.
I agree completely with this sentiment. I don't feel like it makes any kind of sense to take it down given its genuine uniqueness as an exhibit and incredible popularity/successful outreach. I'm hopeful that they'll make that official - I always say it's easier/smarter to find new space for temporary exhibits than it is to take down a really incredible "special" exhibit.
 
Although it's not related to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, I believe that in Japan, Aquamarine Fukushima excels over Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium in terms of long-term care techniques for deep-sea creatures and the diversity of its collection.
Ohh that makes sense, I think they're one of Monterey Bay's Japan partners so I can see that. I'll have to look more into their collection. I know Numazu is a hit or miss in terms of care (I think particularly with the fish, their invert collection is pretty good from what I've seen)
 
Ohh that makes sense, I think they're one of Monterey Bay's Japan partners so I can see that. I'll have to look more into their collection. I know Numazu is a hit or miss in terms of care (I think particularly with the fish, their invert collection is pretty good from what I've seen)
Numazu is imho the absolute worst aquarium I've ever seen for shark husbandry especially. They exhibit all manner of sharks and rays that simply do not fit in their tanks and are almost certainly dead in a matter of days. It's tragic that no one in governance does anything about this.
 
Numazu is imho the absolute worst aquarium I've ever seen for shark husbandry especially. They exhibit all manner of sharks and rays that simply do not fit in their tanks and are almost certainly dead in a matter of days. It's tragic that no one in governance does anything about this.
Yeah, not exactly the best look to have "Deep-Sea Aquarium" in your name when what seems like half the species on exhibit are dying / can't keep alive.. most of which are caught by fisherman i think so they're already in rough shape but still, definitely can do and be a ton better
 
This is related news but MBARI's new Flagship research vessel arrived at their facility a few weeks ago and will be ready for use soon. This is relevant because they specifically mention how it'll allow them to collaborate more with the Aquarium for Into the Deep, since the ship is more than twice the size of the previous one. The main barricade I was told the last time I talked to the aquarists was the MBARI boats get reserved months in advance because of all the scientists that want to use them, so they have to wait their turn to go on collection trips. Hopefully, this means we may see new species on exhibit within the coming months since it sounds like the Aquarium will have more chances to go out and collect species.

Also on their new Instagram post promoting Fathomverse, I thought the Jelly in the clip was an Earleria corachloeae but it was just a Purple Lip Jelly with it's tentacles retraced. Kind of bummer but hopefully we do see Earleria corachloeae on exhibit at least once since the Aquarium has been successful at culturing the species.
 
Thanks to a friend who visited today, the current Midwater species list looks something like:
  • Purple Lipped Jellies
  • Bloody Belly Comb Jellies
  • Crown Jellies
  • Common Siphonophores
  • "Red X" Comb Jellies
They didn't note the other tanks, but we can probably assume it's a mix of Sea Angels (since it's still Spring), Lobed Comb Jellies, Red-spot Comb Jellies, or Abyssal Comb Jellies. Everything else in the Benthic Galleries is still the same as previously noted.
Hopefully we see something new and exciting soon.
 
Thanks to a friend who visited today, the current Midwater species list looks something like:
  • Purple Lipped Jellies
  • Bloody Belly Comb Jellies
  • Crown Jellies
  • Common Siphonophores
  • "Red X" Comb Jellies
They didn't note the other tanks, but we can probably assume it's a mix of Sea Angels (since it's still Spring), Lobed Comb Jellies, Red-spot Comb Jellies, or Abyssal Comb Jellies. Everything else in the Benthic Galleries is still the same as previously noted.
Hopefully we see something new and exciting soon.
Per a visit today the midwater species collection is currently:
Bloody Belly Comb Jellies

Crown Jelly

Sea gooseberry

Purple Lipped Jellies

Lobed Comb Jellies

Common Siphonophores

Red X Comb Jelly

Some other updates:
  • In the Seafloor the Predatory Tunicates have moved to the tank that used to hold Fire Stars.
  • Also in Seafloor the Feather Stars have replaced Isopods.
  • The bone eating worms seem to have all died off for now, their tank only has plumose anemones.
 
Doesn't look like any new species have debuted yet but the Aquarium put out a cool video of what goes into collecting and raising the Hawaii Deep-sea species (glad to see they're doing more Into the Deep content again), which seemingly confirms they're actually culturing the Red Spotted Crown Jellies and Red-spot Comb Jellies inhouse (also the Mauve Stingers but that was already known). I tried looking at the labels on the Krisel's but nothing new was shown. There's a lot of cool Behind-the-Scenes footage of the Deep-sea Jelly Lab and footage of the different species on exhibit (including a small clip of the Bumpy Jelly which we haven't seen before). The Red-spot Comb Jelly signage is also visible but it's too blurry to read but it looks like it mentioned something about it's bioluminescence it emmits from the red dots on it's body.
 
Doesn't look like any new species have debuted yet but the Aquarium put out a cool video of what goes into collecting and raising the Hawaii Deep-sea species (glad to see they're doing more Into the Deep content again), which seemingly confirms they're actually culturing the Red Spotted Crown Jellies and Red-spot Comb Jellies inhouse (also the Mauve Stingers but that was already known). I tried looking at the labels on the Krisel's but nothing new was shown. There's a lot of cool Behind-the-Scenes footage of the Deep-sea Jelly Lab and footage of the different species on exhibit (including a small clip of the Bumpy Jelly which we haven't seen before). The Red-spot Comb Jelly signage is also visible but it's too blurry to read but it looks like it mentioned something about it's bioluminescence it emmits from the red dots on it's body.


I think this was playing in the theater during my visit in late March
 
It appears the Abyssal Comb Jellies and Short Lobed Comb Jellies have swapped tanks from a couple of recent posts I saw. So the Abyssals are in the tall column tank, while the Lobed Combs are in the smaller, round tank. Other than that, no other species changes I could find.

What is really interesting, though, is (I'm guessing this is the Monterey Bay Habitats area), there is at least 1 Deep-sea Sunstar (Rathbunaster californicus) on exhibit, via this photo I found in a post from a few days ago. Not sure which tank this is exactly, but I would've thought this species would at least be in Into the Deep, like the Whalefall Tank. Interesting that they decided to put it on the other side of the Aquarium, though maybe it was collected in a shallower depth.
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Found a post from the other day that shows the Red Spotted Crown Jellies are back on exhibit, unsure of which tank though.
Since I'm currently planning to go down at the end of next month, and since Into the Deep is now a little over 3 years old, I thought I'd make a list of species that have been exhibited so far throughout the past 3 years just to see the diversity. I'll try not to include duplicates, since some species were housed both in the Muddy Bottom and Seamount exhibits as an example, so I'll just list things off once to avoid confusion. This is mainly off the top of my head, so it might be a little spotty (others can chime in too), but as far as I can remember:

Midwater exhibits |
  • Bloody Belly Comb Jellies (Lampocteis cruentiventer)
  • Purple Lipped Jellies (Earlaria purpurea)
  • South Pacific Mauve Stingers (Pelagia flaveola)
  • Abyssal Comb Jellies (Beroe abyssicola)
  • Short Lobed Comb Jellies (Bolinopsis microptera)
  • "Red X" Comb Jellies (should be Order Cydippida, still undescribed)
  • California Sea Gooseberries (Hormiphora californensis, usually a placeholder species)
  • Umbrella Comb Jellies (Thalassocalyce Inconstans)
  • Common Siphonophores (MBARI said they're Nanomia septata in a publication)
  • Rhizophysa Siphonophores (Rhizophysa eysenhardtii)
  • Sea Angels (most likely Clione limacina)
  • Balloon Worms (Poeobius meseres)
  • Chandelier Jellies (Eumedusa sp.)
  • Snow Globe Jellies (Modeeria rotunda)
  • Red Paper Lantern Jellies (Pandea rubra)
  • Tower Jellies (Neoturris breviconis)
  • Red Spot Comb Jellies (Eurhamphaea vexilligera)
  • Red Spot Crown Jellies (Nausithoe punctata)
  • Bumpy Jellies (Stellamedusa ventana)
  • Dinner Plate Jelly (Solmissus incisa)
  • Long Spur Jellies (Leuckartiara sp.)
  • Amber Bloody Belly Comb Jellies (Lampocteis sp, undescribed species, it'd be just the second species in the genus)
  • Phyllosoma (Slipper Lobster Larvae) (no way to confirm exact species)
  • Barrel Amphipods (Phronima sedentaria)
  • Merga costata (no common name)
  • Hourglass Jellies (Catablema vesicarium)
Muddy Bottom exhibits |
  • Armored Sea Cucumbers (Psolus squamatus)
  • Deep-sea Carnation Coral (Gersemia juliepackardae)
  • Glowing Sea Cucumber (Pannychia moseleyi)
  • Predatory Tunicates (Megalodicopia hians)
  • Mushroom Soft Corals (Heteropolypus ritteri)
  • Flytrap Anemones (Actinoscyphia sp.)
  • Apple Anemones (Stomphia didemon)
  • Pom Pom Anemones (Liponema brevicornis)
  • Sea Spiders (Colossendeis spp.)
  • Fire Stars (Hymenodiscus sp.)
  • Feather Stars (Florometra serratissima)
  • Japanese Porcupine Crabs (Paralomis histrix)
  • Spiny King Crabs (Paralithodes californiensis)
  • Puget Sound Box Crab (Lopholithodes foraminatus)
  • Halipteris Sea Pens (Halipteris sp.)
  • Funiculina Sea Pens (Funiculina sp.)
  • Squat lobster (Munida sp.)
  • Branched Tree Coral (Parastenella ramosa)
  • Droopy Sea Pens (Umbellula sp.)
  • North Pacific Bigeye Octopuses (Octopus californicus)
  • Pacific Hagfishes (Eptatretus stoutii)
  • Deep-sea sole (Embassichthys bathybius)
  • Thornyhead sp. (Sebastolobus sp.)
  • Spider crab sp.
  • Red Rope Corals (Callistephanus simplex)
  • Snakehead Eelpouts (Lycenchelys crotalinus)
  • Neptunea Snail (Neptunea sp.)
  • Isocyonis Anemone (Isosicyonis sp.)
  • Salmon Snailfishes (Careproctus rastrinus)
  • some other various, unsigned species that came in as "hitchhikers" on the rocks/coral bases that we never got an ID confirmation on, these include: Skeleton Shrimp sp, Mussel sp, Corallimorphid sp, Predatory Chiton sp, some other polyp-looking things
Seamount Exhibits |
  • Lumpfishes (Cyclopterus lumpus)
  • Basket Stars (Gorgonocephalus eucnemis)
  • Branched Tree Corals (Parastenella ramosa)
  • Bubblegum Corals (Paragorgia arborea)
  • Deep-sea Cauliflower Corals (Sibogagorgia cauliflora)
  • Red Sea Fans (Swiftia kofoidi)
  • Club Tipped Anemone (most likely Corallimorphus pilatus)
  • Black Coral (Alternatipathes sp.)
  • Shaggy Bamboo Corals (Isidella tentaculum)
  • Arbiter Snailfishes (Careproctus kamikawai)
  • Deep-sea Brittlestars (Amphiodia urtica)
  • Cookie Star (?) (Ceramaster patagonicus) (unsure on subspecies) (This one I'm unsure about since it was spotted by u/splendens I believe a while back, but it wasn't signed. However, from the photo, that looks like the closest ID I could find)
Whalefall Exhibits |
  • Australian Ghost Sharks (Callorhinchus milii)
  • Japanese Spider Crabs (Macrocheira kaempferi)
  • Big Roughy (Gephyroberyx japonicus)
  • Japanese Armorheads (Pentaceros japonicus)
  • Longspine Thornyhead (Sebastolobus altivelis)
  • Shortspine Thornyhead (Sebastolobus alascanus)
  • Fragile Pink Sea Urchins (Strongylocentrotus fragilis)
  • Red Sea Stars (Hippasteria sp.)
  • Giant Isopods (Bathynomus giganteus)
  • Japanese Giant Isopods (Bathynomus doederleini)
  • Bone Eating Worms (Osedax spp.) (I remember seeing 3 different species at once before, but the most recent colony seemed to be made up of 2 species)
  • Plumose Anemones (Metridium sp.)
  • Spider Crab sp.
Honorable Mention: Deep-sea / California Sunstar (Rathbunaster californicus) currently on exhibit in the "Monterey Habitats" area, so IMO it has a high chance of eventually being exhibited in "Into the Deep" sometime in the near future

So in total, that's roughly 80 - 85 different species (if you count the different species of Bone Worms, and do not count the various hitchhiker species. If you did, it's probably closer to 90 total species) that have been exhibited so far the last 3 years. Now this doesn't include species they've had success with behind the scenes, but haven't exhibited officially yet (such as the Beaded Comb Jellies (most likely Euplokamis dunlapae, which they've cultured for multiple generations last I was told) and Giant Red Mysids (Gnathophausia ingens) that I've mentioned previously. I might've missed some stuff since people don't really post anything from Into the Deep besides the typical species (the Bloody Bellies, the Giant Spider Crabs, the Giant Isopods, etc)

So far, it's an incredible list. Can't wait to see how it expands over these next years.
 
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Whalefall Exhibits |
  • Australian Ghost Sharks (Callorhinchus milii)
  • Japanese Spider Crabs (Macrocheira kaempferi)
  • Big Roughy (Gephyroberyx japonicus)
  • Japanese Armorheads (Pentaceros japonicus)
  • Longspine Thornyhead (Sebastolobus altivelis)
  • Shortspine Thornyhead (Sebastolobus alascanus)
  • Fragile Pink Sea Urchins (Strongylocentrotus fragilis)
  • Red Sea Stars (Hippasteria sp.)
I forgot to add the Sablefishes (Anoplopoma fimbria) that have been on exhibit in this tank (the largest tank) since opening.
Also this was something mentioned a while ago but was never posted here, but @/splendens reminded that there are some Golden King Crabs (Lithodes aequispinus) in the largest Whalefall Tank as well that were added a while ago. Seen by u/vashta_nerada_ back at the end of May
There have also been a couple of "Magenta Bloody Belly Comb Jellies" that have been on exhibit over the years, but it hasn't been confirmed so far whether they're a new species, or just a more purple-looking color form of the Bloody Bellies, so I won't consider them until we know for sure.
 
Thankfully, someone uploaded a walkthrough video of Into the Deep that was recorded on July 11th, so this is the best up-to-date footage we have, God bless this person. A couple of updates from the video:
  • There are now Pacific Barrelfish (Hyperoglyphe japonica) in the largest Whalefall Tank (possibly from Enoshima or Tokyo Sea Life Park? Not sure though)
  • The Pacific Hagfish now live in the tank that used to exhibit the Bone Worms (presumably since there are no viable colonies at the moment)
  • The Big Roughy isn't signed anymore for the Whalefall tank, though it's hard to say whether it's off exhibit or not, since it's always hiding in the darkest corners
  • There are currently Sea Spiders with the Pom Pom Anemones, and they're signed as Ascorhynchus japonicum, so we finally have a proper ID on those.
  • The Predatory Tunicates were moved from the large Muddy Bottom tank to the smaller tank next to it.
  • The Shaggy Bamboo Corals are now signed in the large Seamount Tank (previously, they were unsigned)
  • It doesn't look like the B. doederleini are exhibited with the B. giganteus anymore, it's just the B. giganteus
I would suggest watching the video to see what's on display right now, but I'm glad we finally have someone who gave us an updated look at everything instead of just trying to track everything through various visitor posts.
 
Thankfully, someone uploaded a walkthrough video of Into the Deep that was recorded on July 11th, so this is the best up-to-date footage we have, God bless this person. A couple of updates from the video:
  • There are now Pacific Barrelfish (Hyperoglyphe japonica) in the largest Whalefall Tank (possibly from Enoshima or Tokyo Sea Life Park? Not sure though)
  • The Pacific Hagfish now live in the tank that used to exhibit the Bone Worms (presumably since there are no viable colonies at the moment)
  • The Big Roughy isn't signed anymore for the Whalefall tank, though it's hard to say whether it's off exhibit or not, since it's always hiding in the darkest corners
  • There are currently Sea Spiders with the Pom Pom Anemones, and they're signed as Ascorhynchus japonicum, so we finally have a proper ID on those.
  • The Predatory Tunicates were moved from the large Muddy Bottom tank to the smaller tank next to it.
  • The Shaggy Bamboo Corals are now signed in the large Seamount Tank (previously, they were unsigned)
  • It doesn't look like the B. doederleini are exhibited with the B. giganteus anymore, it's just the B. giganteus
I would suggest watching the video to see what's on display right now, but I'm glad we finally have someone who gave us an updated look at everything instead of just trying to track everything through various visitor posts.
Wait there are no boneworms at the moment? I'm planning on visiting next month and this was probably the animal I want to see.
 
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