Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium

zoologicus said:
0.1 harbor seal Riley was transferred from the Riverbanks Zoo to the Point Defiance Zoo on January 30th, 2025. Point Defiance has also assumed ownership of the animal from Riverbanks.
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The Zoo officially announced Riley today on their socials, she is now officially on exhibit in the Rocky Shores with the other Harbor Seals and Sea Lions
Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium on Instagram: "Meet Riley! Our newest addition, a 13-year-old female harbor seal, joined our family from Riverbanks Zoo & Garden. Riley is settling in nicely and getting comfortable in her new home. Her keepers say she is a bit shy but incredibly sweet as she’s adjusting to life here. Guests can see Riley in the Rocky Shores habitat with our seals and sea lions. "
 
It was incredibly busy today (a mix of elementary kids on Spring Break + everyone trying to beat the rain I'm guessing) so I couldn't get a good look at everything, but here are the changes I noticed:

Tropical Reef Aquarium
  • Honestly, I didn't pay attention to them before so I'm not 100% sure if they're technically new, but they're not included on the updated signage so I'm assuming they're new. But it looks like a group of Spot-nape Butterflyfish (Chaetodon oxycephalus), Dot-dash Butterflyfish (Chaetodon pelewensis), and Mertensii Butterflyfish (Chaetodon mertensii) were all added into the "Lagoon" exhibit. Which makes for a surprisingly diverse Butterflyfish collection which is nice to see since that group is a little underrepresented in Aquariums IMO
Pacific Seas Aquarium
  • The "Northwest Waters" tank signage has been updated and now features the Big Skates.
  • A Northern Spearnose Poacher (Agonopsis vulsa) is now on exhibit in the "Sandy Bottom" tank (not signed though). Glad to see this species make a resurgence again here, now being kept at both Seattle and PDZA again.
  • Also in that same tank, they've added an insane amount of Orange Sea Pens, which were already present in the tank in small numbers, but there are between 25 and 30 new ones in there now. (They need to share some with us at Seattle please, lol)
  • The Japanese Spider Crab is still "off-exhibit temporarily", which honestly makes me think it must've passed away. I wouldn't be surprised if the Zoo acquires a new group in the coming weeks/months.
Arctic Tundra
  • Freya the Arctic Fox is back out on exhibit after taking a short leave of absence. Sven the male Arctic Fox is still behind the scenes to my knowledge recovering from his injury.
  • That pond area I mentioned last time that is right outside of the Musk-Ox viewing is still filled, which means it was done intentionally and not due to the rain. I'm honestly not even sure what could go here that would fit with the Arctic theme. It would make for a very cool Turtle exhibit or Waterfowl area, potentially, but I'm curious to see what they do with it since it's being maintained now.
The next time I plan on visiting will probably be when Ume (the baby Malayan Tapir) makes her exhibit debut, since I'd really like to see her while she still has her spots and stripes pattern
 
The Zoo announced today in this blog post a total of 8 baby Meerkats were born at the Zoo! Two litters of 4 by separate parents.
The first litter is now on exhibit and can wander in and out when they choose; the second litter is still behind the scenes with the mother.
Sucks that this stretch of Sunny weather is ending Saturday, would love to catch them outside before then hopefully. Might have to stop by quickly soon.
 
I only stopped by for less than hour due to time constraints today but the weather was too good to pass up while I was in the area. And thankfully I did, because I got so much information:

'Kidz Zone'
  • The former Giant Leaf Insect exhibit is now home to Dominio Roaches (Therea petiveriana), there's not a ton of climbing opportunities in their exhibit so they're all just on the foreground
  • The former Axolotl exhibit is still covered up, and nothing has seemingly replaced it yet
  • (didn't see the baby Meerkats today sadly, but with the weather warming up lately, I'm sure they'll be given outdoor access soon)
Tropical Reef Aquarium
  • I finally saw the Zoo's Australian Whipray (Himantura australis), I can back up what the volunteer told me about her being small, she had to be no larger than 3ft around. She hides in the very back in the shadows, but made a brief appearance today which was shocking but I got some decent photos so we can ID if she's actually an H. australis or not.
  • According to a volunteer I talked to today, he said an "Early to mid May opening" is the target for the "Coral Reef Close-up" exhibit. Which looks very plausible since they've now added a couple species to their digital signage which include:
  • (Small tank on the left) Crown of Thorns Starfish (Acanthaster spp. is what it's signed as, but it's most likely A. planci if I had to guess)
  • (Large, center tank with live corals) Ocellaris Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris), Red Firefish (Nemateleotris magnifica), Yellow Head Sleeper Goby (Valenciennea strigata), Mandarin Dragonet (synchiropus splendidus), Purple Queen Anthias (Pseudanthias tuka), and Lemonpeel Angelfish (Centropyge flavissima)
  • (Small tank on the right) No species signed yet
In the initial exhibit reveal plans to members, they also had the Lineatus Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lineatus) mentioned too, so those are probably going to be in there too. I'm really, really impressed they managed to bring in some Crown of Thorns Starfish, they're not very common in the US to my knowledge. The Purple Queen Anthias are also wonderful to see, those are one of my favorite Pseudanthias species. Will be nice to photograph them under normal lighting. I'm excited to see this open next month.

I had to skip the left side of the zoo due to time constraints but I doubt anything has changed since last time. Speaking of the weather warming up lately here, I'm hoping within the next few weeks, we'll see the debut of Ume the baby Tapir since it should consistently warm enough outdoors for her soon, plus she is losing her spots and stripes already so hopefully there is still time to see her with some of her baby pattern left
 
While there was nothing new today (I did get some photos of the baby meetkats though which was super nice to finally do), here are a few minor (or huge updates if you're a fish nerd):
  • The Zoo says that once Ume gets better at swimming, she'll be out on public view
And with a lot of help and insight from @Zoological Point & @Local_Shark , it turns out the Tropical Reef Aquarium specifically has a lot of hidden gems that are on exhibit nowhere else:
  • The Australian Whipray is a confirmed Himantura australis, coming from an Aquarium in Australia which pretty much confirms her species status
  • The Spot-nape Butterflyfishes in the "Lagoon" are apparently the only ones in captivity, besides the ones in Shanghai (via ZTL so take it with some salt)
  • There's a Bullseye Round Ray (Urobatis concentricus) in the Stingray Beach, previously thought to be a Haller's Round Ray, this looks like a juvenile and we believe to be the only one in captivity (that we know of)
  • There's a Spectacled Filefish (Cantherhines fronticinctus) in the "Blue Hole" that is allegedly the only in captivity (according to ZTL so take it with some salt), but shes very active, not sure why they put her in the darkest tank in the building considering the species comes from Seagrass beds but that's one I had no idea about till Zoological Point notified me of her
These are some species that should be on your bucketlist if you're a Fish nerd, i wasn't aware their collection had so many "only in captivity" species but wow, this place just keeps surprising me each time
 
Happy to have been of any help at all! I have no documentation of bullseye round rays at any aquarium in the US at minimum, though it’s possible some have snuck in under the radar as, like in this case, some color morphs can appear similar to the classic California/Haller’s round ray (U. halleri). As for Australian whiptail rays, I am all but certain that this is the only one in the United States unless the male at National Aquarium Baltimore (named Whippy) is not what he seems. He has a slightly different pattern than his female tank mates, who I can say with relative certainty are both fine-spotted leopard whiptails (H. tutul), but not different enough that I feel comfortable saying he isn’t. Definitively proving it is hard, but if they have distinct dot-form or reticulate patterns and are documented as being captured off of Australia or transferred from there after being locally captured, it’s pretty certain. In PDZA’s case, we have such confirmed documentation.

Either way, any tropical or general elasmo nerds will definitely want to stop by. I know I will be trying to!
 
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Some minor news but it looks like the Zoo is ramping up hype for the "Coral Reef Close-up" as they've now updated the Tropical Reef Aquarium page with new information about the exhibit. In addition to the species that were mentioned above, it also mentions "Butterflyfish" (going to assume that means Copperband Butterflyfish based off the photo they added), "Brown Tang" (going to assume that's either the Powder Brown Tang or Chocolate Mimic Tang", and Coral Banded Shrimps.
Hopefully, maybe in the next week or two we'll get an opening date since it's looking like a mid May opening like the aquarist said is looking very likely.
 
A few notes from today's quick visit: (Didn't see Ume today unfortunately, hopefully next time)

Tropical Reef Aquarium
  • From the best view I could get, it doesn't look like any of the animals have moved in yet to the "Coral Reef Close-up" displays. So it doesn't look like it'll be opening this week, perhaps next week then?
Pacific Seas Aquarium
  • There are currently some really cool jellies in the "Cross Jelly" tank (aka Local Species Tank). These include a large amount of Clapper Medusa (Sarsia tubulosa) and an Abyssal Comb Jelly (Beroe abyssicola, though this one is lacking the red stomach). Never seen the Clapper Medusa on exhibit before, but this is a great sign that the annual "Jelly Bloom" here is starting (during the Summer when the weather is super warm, we get a huge variety of various Jellies). So this tank might display some really cool stuff in the coming months.
Also some recent news that wasn't posted:
  • Unfortunately, Saya the Harbor Seal passed away recently during a routine medical procedure. She was 12 years old and the daughter of "Qilak".
  • This wasn't announced through a post but in the comments, the Zoo mentioned that Sven the Arctic Fox has been back on exhibit for a few weeks now after recovering from his broken leg. It looks like he's still taking it slow since I've only seen one fox (guessing it's Freya) the last couple of visits, but he should be out sometimes now.
 
Did a very quick walkthrough today since most of the animals who don't have a water feature in their exhibit were not out or in the shade (it's the hottest day of the year so far today), but some things I noticed:

Tropical Reef Aquarium
  • The center tank is now stocked with various stony corals and some invertebrates (snails and hermit crabs from what I could see, picture is attached below), no fish yet, however. The tank on the left doesn't have the Crown of Thorns Sea Stars yet, and the tank on the right is empty for now as well. But they both have their "exhibit lighting" on so they're getting very close to opening it soon, it looks like. Just didn't hit on the "Spring 2025" opening unless they get it open within the next 3 days. Once this exhibit is finally open, I'll make a new species list for the Zoo.
Pacific Seas Aquarium
  • The Sunflower Sea Stars were moved from one of the local exhibits to the Japanese Spider Crab exhibit. I'd imagine it's temporary since the tank they're supposed to be in, it looks like something might've spawned and clouded the water since it was milky white.
  • The Snipefish weren't on exhibit in the Japanese Spider Crab exhibit either
  • They also took away the "Crabs off exhibit temporarily" sign they've had there for a while. Perhaps it's going to take longer than they thought to acquire a new group of crabs or there's a new group moving in soon, don't know for sure
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The Zoo announced a new pair of Asian Small Clawed Otters, Sebastian and Pintar (ages 7 & 3.5). They come as apart of the SSP program, and will rotate between the exhibits like the other Asian Forest Sanctuary animals. They didn't mention what facilities they came from.

The Zoo still has Arista and Javan, their other pair of Otters, but the two groups will not interact
 
Coral Reef Close-Up is now open!

The Zoo announced that yesterday, the Coral Reef Close-Up exhibit in the Tropical Reef Aquarium finally opened up.

"A variety of reef fish, uniquely adapted to life among the corals, dart about within the habitat. Guests can spot bicolor and redfin anthias, razorfish, longnose hawkfish, copperband butterflyfish, and a lawnmower blenny. Plus, meet the reef’s essential caretakers like hermit crabs, snails, and banded coral shrimp who help maintain the delicate balance of reef life.

Nearby, another habitat features clownfish nestled among the stinging tentacles of their anemone host. In this symbiotic relationship, both species protect and support each other, just one of many ways reef life is interconnected".
Hopefully those Crown-of-Thorns Stars are on exhibit too like what was planned, I'm not back till tomorrow so hopefully sometime next week, I'll be able to go check it out, along with an update species list
 
(As promised, here is the updated species list, at the bottom of the page)

I decided to stop by very briefly today (was there for under an hour) to check out the new exhibit. From what I saw, this is the species list:
(From right cube tank, to center reef tank, to left cube tank)
  • Orange Ocellaris Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris) (just a pair)
  • Rainbow Bubble Tip Anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor)
  • Dispar Anthias (Nemanthias dispar) (Males and Females)
  • Bicolor Anthias (Pseudanthias bicolor) (Males and Females)
  • Grooved Razorfishes (Centriscus scutatus) (They're signed as "Striped Shrimpfish" "Aeoliscus strigatus", but I'm pretty sure they're Razorfish)
  • Copperband Butterflyfish (Chelmon rostratus)
  • Longnose Hawkfish (Oxycirrhites typus)
  • Red Firefish (Nemateleotris magnifica)
  • Purple Firefish (Nemateleotris decora)
  • Lawnmower Blenny (Salarias fasciatus) (Not on exhibit yet from what I saw)
  • Scopas Tang (Zebrasoma scopas) (Not on exhibit yet from what I saw)
  • Lemonpeel Angelfish (Centropyge flavissima) (Not on exhibit yet from what I saw)
  • (Blue Leg Hermit Crabs, Nassarius Snails, and Coral Banded Shrimp are also on exhibit)
  • (Various Stony corals are also on exhibit, of course)
  • Pacific Crown-of-Thorns Sea Star (Acanthaster cf. solaris)
I'll put photos below of the space + the large reef tank, but the Reef Tank is dealing with an algae problem, which is not surprising considering it's still pretty new. The Crown of Thorns was really cool to see; there's only one in there. The species in red I didn't see because they haven't been added yet. The Purple Queen Anthias, Mandarin Dragonet, and Lineatus Wrasse for the live Reef Tank that were signed prior to the exhibit opening are not on exhibit. These are more delicate species, so hopefully once the exhibit is a couple months older, these will be added.
Also shoutout to PDZA for having Razorfish in a Coral Reef environment, they're one of the only aquariums besides Monterey Bay I've seen to exhibit them like how they live in the wild, since most aquariums exhibit Shrimpfish or Razorfish in Seagrass type exhibits (unfortunately, we are guilty of this at the Seattle Aquarium) which isn't totally accurate.

Other news from today:
  • I finally saw the Tasseled Wobbegong in the 'Outer Reef' for the first time today. Only the latter half of its body, but I'm still counting it as a win. Funnily enough, it was hanging out in the spot that the old Wobbegong used to hang out in (right in front of the "Blue Hole" window). Hopefully, one day I'll see all of him, but getting any appearance from a Wobbegong is really exciting.
  • All of the Japanese Fish from the Spider Crab Tank in Pacific Seas were taken out; these were the Longspine Snipefish, Japanese Codlings, and Hilgendorf's Saucords. Assuming they're BTS now, it seems like the Zoo hasn't acquired any new Spider Crabs. For now, 3 large Sunflower Sea Stars are in that tank, and the TV signage talks about Sunflower Sea Star conservation.
  • There are currently some Canadian Comb Jellies (Bolinopsis microptera) in the "Cross Jellies" Tank in Pacific Seas
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Stopped by for a quick walkaround today:
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping said:
  • Lawnmower Blenny (Salarias fasciatus) (Not on exhibit yet from what I saw)
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I did see 1 (maybe 2, they're pretty small, must be captive bred) in the tank so they're on exhibit, but definitely no Scopas Tang or Lemonpeel Angel
Northwest_FIsh_Keeping said:
  • Grooved Razorfishes (Centriscus scutatus) (They're signed as "Striped Shrimpfish" "Aeoliscus strigatus", but I'm pretty sure they're Razorfish)
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After getting a closer look, they actually have both species which is really neat, when you see them side by side, it's pretty obvious they're different (the razorfishes are larger, more "shiny", and their mouths are more red). I counted 5 Razorfish and 9 or 10 Shrimpfish, but the Razorfish are more active and the Shrimpfish were mostly eating stuff off the sand.

They also put a small barrier in front of the tank, so you can't get up close to it at the moment, probably to let the fish get adjusted more easily.

I also saw both the Australian Whipray and Tasseled Wobbegong, that's the first time I've seen both out at the same time (though it was brief). The Whipray seems to be shy of people, since the only times I've seen her are when there's barely anyone else around the viewing windows. She's still quite small, so I'm guessing that as she gets older / bigger, her shyness will go away. The Wobbegong was towards the back, but it was nice to see his face for once.

Kidz Zone:
  • The Chacoan Horned Frog is temporarily off exhibit, it's tank is covered up just saying "Temporarily off exhibit - Kidz Zone Keepers"
  • The former Axolotl exhibit is still covered up
  • The Meerkats have outdoor access now since it's warm enough for them, I also did see a majority of the babies so it looks like they're all mixed together now
 
In an article the Zoo just posted, they evidently revealed there are 2 Queensland Groupers (Epinephelus lanceolatus) that are behind the scenes right now. Im guessing at least 1 of these will be going into the "Outer Reef" Exhibit in the Tropical Reef Aquarium at some point, otherwise I don't see why would show them intentionally. Really cool to see they'll have 2 species of large grouper now on exhibit soon

Meet Aquarist Megan - Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium
 
Has been raining all day here so I decided to stop by thinking it would be pretty quite (how wrong I was, so many camp kids everywhere) but anyways, as usual, a lot of the updates I saw came from both Aquariums. Since it was raining so much, a lot of the animals, specifically in the Asian Forest Sanctuary, plus the Arctic Foxes and Red Wolves, weren't out today. I also did come across a video that did show the Wrinkled Hornbill out with the Gibbons a few weeks ago, so it still does go on exhibit time to time it seems.

Tropical Reef Aquarium
  • PDZA's rare fish collection just keeps growing, as at least 3 Sleek Unicornfish (Naso hexacanthus) were added to the 'Outer Reef' exhibit. I saw them swimming around and instantly recognized that they weren't Vlamingi Tangs. Based of ZTL, these should be the only ones in North America, besides Shedd, who also keeps them apparently. This also means that there are now 4 different Naso species in the tank (N. tonganus, N. brevirostris, N. vlamingii, and N. hexacanthus) (I think I labeled them as N. tuberosus on my last species list iteration, but they're signed as N. tonganus now)
Pacific Seas Aquarium
  • The Coho Salmon that were in the outside wave tank were moved inside to the Sunflower Sea Star exhibit
  • The Pacific Herring tank got a new school of herring, it's a lot fuller than before
  • There is currently no Giant Pacific Octopus on exhibit, and there is a sign up by the tank explaining so
  • Also on the sign, they mentioned there is an Eastern Pacific Red Octopus (Octopus rubescens) in the circular tank next to the touchpools, though I didn't see it because of how crowded it was
  • There seems to only be 1 Big Skate in the "Northwest Waters" exhibit now, not sure what happened to the other one.
  • There is also an unsigned Lingcod (Ophiodon elongatus) in the tank now, which must be new since I didn't see it last time.
  • The Side Stripe Shrimps that used to be in the Dock Tank are now in the "PNW Colors" Tank (I honestly forgot what that tank was called)
  • There are now Kelp Perches (Brachyistius frenatus) signed in the Dock Tank, though I didn't see any
  • There is some sort of large, black fish in the "Under the Narrows" Tank that isn't signed. This one is really puzzinling since it doesn't have the markings of any perch species around here, looks more like a Bream but we don't have those here. Working on an ID for it right now.
 
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