Sydney Aquarium SydneyAquarium and the Dugongs

Hix

Hix

Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands
15+ year member
Premium Member
Went to Sydney Aquarium yesterday, for the first time since it opened many, many years ago. I'm not really into fish, but I thought the dugongs would be interesting to see, as they're a species I haven't seen before in a zoo or seaquarium.

Thought it would only take me an hour or so to do the whole facility, but after two hours I still hadn't seen everything.

I thought I'd go through it fairly quickly because I'm not a fish person, but I ended up spending quite a bit of time trying to photograph them (with limited success).

I went on a Tuesday because I figured there'd be crowds on the weekend - but there were crowds on Tuesdays too. I arrived at the same time as three coachloads of tourists and a couple of school groups.

First exhibit was a long tank for platypus. The platypus was out and feeding, so there was about 30 people clustered around the tank trying to get a better view of it. I just kept going, but the tank was nicely furnished and looked like a great habitat for the platypus.

Outside was a very long tank displaying a Murray-Darling ecosystem, followed by another tank exhibiting species from Northern Rivers. There were several smaller tanks with smaller freshwater species.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/murray-darling-river-tank-68633/

There's a large exhibit with a Saltwater Crocodile, and small Mangrove exhibits either side with Mudskippers, Hermit Crabs and Fiddler Crabs.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/crocodile-exhibit-68597/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/mudskipper-68632/

But what I'd really come to see were the Dugongs. They were in the Oceanarium which is vewable from both above and below. I wasn't expecting too much from the dugongs - when I've been to zoos to see some specific animal, it's usually resting or not visible, or has it's back turned, or is at the back of the enclosure. But the dugongs were very visible: they swam around most of the time I was there, and they would stop and sit on top of the tunnels. After I realised they were swimming around the entire tank I simply moved away from the crowds and waited until the dugongs swam past me. And while I was waiting I tried photographing the rays (there was a large Shark Ray) and the fish that were also in the tank.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/oceanarium-pool-dugongs-68636/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/oceanarium-tunnel-68635/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/dugong-feeding-68608/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/dugong-68607/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/dugong-68600/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/dugong-above-tunnel-68601/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/dugong-68611/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/closeup-dugong-mouth-68614/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/fish-68616/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/foxface-68618/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/blue-tang-68594/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/mado-68627/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/moorish-idol-68629/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/orange-spined-surgeonfish-68638/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/fish-varieties-oceanarium-68634/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/ray-68640/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/ray-mouthparts-68655/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68647/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68648/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-ray-68649/

Unfortunately, there's algae spots growing on the Perspex (spoiling some pictures), and the further something is from the perspex the less in focus it is, so a lot of my efforts were wasted. But I still did get some nice shots of the dugongs. I spent more than 45 minutes in the Oceanarium!

One thing I didn’t like was the labelling of the fish – they were actually really good labels but the were spread out around the oceanarium so if you wanted to know the name of a particular species you had to go walking around the pool the find the correct label. Having them all clustered together (like many zoos do in their bird aviaries) would make life easier. Of course, this was not a problem on the smaller tanks where the labels were directly above the occupants.

At the end of the walkway, projected onto the carpeted floor was an image of a rockpool, with fish crabs and rays swimming around. You have to walk through this and as soon as you step in the 'water' it ripples and moves as if the water was real - and the fish swim away!

http://www.zoochat.com/52/light-projection-floor-68624/

But if I thought the dugong oceanarium was crowded, I was surprised when I went to the shark-quarium (or whatever it's called) next door - the people were jammed in solid. I tried to get some photos but it was pretty dark. They have some very large rays and a large loggerhead turtle as well as Port Jackson Sharks, Leopard Sharks, Grey Nurse Sharks and Wobbegongs.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/loggerhead-turtle-68625/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/grey-nurse-shark-dentition-68620/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/wobbegong-68656/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/loggerhead-turtle-68650/

By this stage I was running out of time so hurried past the remaining tanks and Great Barrier Reef displays, but the last tank was a giant tank housing several sharks, rays and hundreds of smaller fish. The difference between this one and the shark-quarium is that the sharkquarium is below sea-level and open to the ocean. This last tank is exactly that - a giant fish tank. There was at least six different viewing areas, and more natural light, so I was able to get a few photos here.

http://www.zoochat.com/52/reef-tank-68641/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/great-barrier-reef-display-68619/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/moray-eels-68630/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/clownfish-68596/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-68645/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/guitarfish-68622/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-tank-68591/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/shark-tank-68591/
http://www.zoochat.com/52/blacktip-reef-shark-68593/

This is the last exhibit, the path then takes you out to the souvenir shop, which I might have had a look through if I hadn't run out of time.

Will have to go back again sometime soon.

(Note: although I have included links in this review, there are many more photos in the Gallery at Sydney Aquarium Gallery » ZooChat

:)

Hix
 
Thank you for taking the time to type up a comprehensive review of the Sydney Aquarium, an establishment that I visited in May of 2007. I really enjoy reading reviews of zoos, aquariums and wildlife parks, and so I appreciate the information and photos that you posted on this website.
 
Did you miss the Pinniped area? If so, you missed the very reason why I went there! :) I had seen the Dugongs when they were at Sea World Gold Coast. Yet I wonder why Sea World would let go of this special exhibit, or are they just on temporary exhibit in Sydney while they are doing construction work up on the Gold Coast?
 
I think it was a very good business move to bring the Dugongs to Sydney. The Aquarium now has a unique animal that Taronga cant offer. Very wise indeed. Hopefully it will also increase the awareness of this fragile animal. I also saw the Dugongs at Seaworld I wasn't really impressed at how they were exhibited, the photos look great I think I will have to pay the aquarium as visit myself.
 
Baldur said:
Yet I wonder why Sea World would let go of this special exhibit, or are they just on temporary exhibit in Sydney while they are doing construction work up on the Gold Coast?
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Seaworld and Sydney aquarium are owned by the same company. It was just a good business decision l belive.
 
Baldur said:
Did you miss the Pinniped area? If so, you missed the very reason why I went there! :)
Click to expand...

As I understand it, the Dugongs have replaced the seals.

:)

Hix
 
I've been to Sydney Aquarium twice this year (in February and April) and both days have been virtually all day visits. I love it there, and spend the vast majority of my time watching the three large oceanaria (dugongs, sharks/turtles and Great Barrier Reef). In addition, there are literally dozens of interesting smaller tanks that between them, manage to present an almost comprehensive collection of Australian aquatic life.

By contrast, I'm a regular visitor at Melbourne Aquarium (rarely does a month go by without my going in) but it's a 2.5 hour visit at best. Partly that's because it's local as opposed to something I travel interstate to see. But the quality gap between the two institutions is massive.

About the only thing that Melbourne has that Sydney doesn't is an excellent temperate marine exhibit (setting aside Antarctic penguins, which is obviously Melbourne's biggest selling point). And believe it or not, I'm not thinking of the Oceanarium (though it is quite good for what it is - I just wish it was a Great Barrier Reef-themed exhibit instead). I'm talking about the BHP-sponsored smaller aquarium as you enter the Oceanarium level.

The fish in that tank are diverse and interesting, and I've been meaning to borrow a fish ID guide from the library and take it down there for a long time. The Oceanarium is impressive in terms of scale and the rays and schools of snapper and other fish are good to see... but you have to look hard to catch sight of any of the more unusual and interesting temperate fish

Anyway. Back to Sydney Aquarium. The dugongs, the dark, open-ocean shark and turtle tank and the Great Barrier Reef complex are a trio of aquatic exhibits that are unsurpassed in Australia. The only thing that matches it, perhaps, is Shark Bay at SeaWorld.

Other highlights for me are the platypus exhibit - because it's *not* darkened, and yet the platypus is perfectly happy to go about its business. That's actually not surprising given that they are not, in fact, nocturnal. The result is an active, unique animal that visitors can actually see. There's little surprise that there's always visitors crowded around the exhibit.

The freshwater exhibits aren't really my biggest interest but are done well. Especially the Murray-Darling tank that has fish, turtles, lizards and waterfowl in a mixed-species enclosure. The saltwater crocodile is a bit familiar for Australian visitors but no doubt is a drawcard for overseas tourists. The Northern Rivers section is excellent, with the exception of a couple of exibits being too dark. I understand the logic - freshwater environments *are* often dark. But many of the species in that tank are commonly found in billabongs and waterholes that are exposed to lots of natural light.

The marine exhibits aside from the three big ones are also quite decent. Melbourne has a superior octopus exhibit, but only because they have a larger species and an individual octopus, at the moment at least (since they have short lifespans) that is quite bold and spends a lot of time up at the glass showing off for visitors.

The fairy penguin exhibit is small and easily outdone by Taronga, but the presence of fish and a stingray, and the regular wave motion, are nice touches. I also like the moray eel tank, and the coral tank could be even larger than it is, but is clearly streets ahead of Melbourne or SeaWorld.
 
CGSwans said:
Other highlights for me are the platypus exhibit - because it's *not* darkened, and yet the platypus is perfectly happy to go about its business. That's actually not surprising given that they are not, in fact, nocturnal.
Click to expand...

A very valid point, interesting that zoos have not also embraced this.
 
Taronga has pletypus in Creatures of the Woolemi doesn't it and of course Healesvilles very unique platypussary. Both of these aren't darkened.
 
PAT said:
Taronga has pletypus in Creatures of the Woolemi doesn't it and of course Healesvilles very unique platypussary. Both of these aren't darkened.
Click to expand...

I don't get to either place often. The Platypusary is relatively dark, though not to the extent of it being a 'nocturnal' exhibit, I grant you. There's also the outside enclosure, but I haven't been fortunate enough to see platypi out and about in there. The same with Creatures of the Wollemi - I just didn't spot them.
 
Cat-Man said:
i was asking, have the seals been given a new exhibit
Click to expand...

They have been moved to SeaWorld on the Gold Coast. The dugongs are in the former seal exhibit.

A very prudent decision, only a few months after Taronga Zoo opened a new $50m complex of seal exhibits.
 
CGSwans said:
I don't get to either place often. The Platypusary is relatively dark, though not to the extent of it being a 'nocturnal' exhibit, I grant you. There's also the outside enclosure, but I haven't been fortunate enough to see platypi out and about in there. The same with Creatures of the Wollemi - I just didn't spot them.
Click to expand...

I haven't seen them in creatures of the Woolemi either but I have seen them in the outdoor exhibit at Healesville. It was very cool to see them not underwater and not at "night".
 
Do they still have the giant Tasmanian crabs in the circular tank just up from the platypus, i visited the aquarium 10 years ago, and these crabs along with the only active platypus and the giant Murray cod, and one huge stingray, i think it was in one of the huge walk through tanks, have stuck in my mind.
I visited at night, and the seal pool was closed.
 
CGSwans wrote: 'By contrast, I'm a regular visitor at Melbourne Aquarium (rarely does a month go by without my going in) but it's a 2.5 hour visit at best. Partly that's because it's local as opposed to something I travel interstate to see. But the quality gap between the two institutions is massive.'

I have visited both institutions las month. I have to agree that sydney aquarium is superior to melbourne. But the quality difference is not 'massive' at all. Sydney has a larger collection, but the melbourne collection is quite impressive as well. The biggest difference are the three oceanaria sydney has got ( melbourne only one), and the number of smaller displays.

Despite the fact melbourne has less exhibits and less shark species, melbourne does have giant pacific octopus, quite impressive yellyfish ( the ones sydney has are quite standard), nautilus, freshwater sharks and sawfish, whalersharks and the antarctic penguin display. And the visitor area looks better, and is more matching with an aquarium of it's stature, something sydney sadly lacks. The coral displays of sydney where by far superior though ( including the mermaid lagoon), and something melbourne should work on, if they want to compete with sydney.
 
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