This weekend, I visited the New England Aquarium in Boston. Before I went, I used my Wellesley free library card to get my ticket for half off. To get there, I took the commuter rail from Wellesley Square, which was about a ten minute bike ride from my dorm. At the aquarium, I first went to the shark and ray touch tank. There were cownose rays, Atlantic rays, and epaulette sharks. The epaulette sharks were my favorite because of their fins and interesting patterns. Downstairs from the touch tank was the main shark exhibit. Most of the sharks were pretty small because about 80% of shark species are four feet or less in length. I learned about the ampullae of Lorenzini, which are electroreceptors that form mucus filled pores, and the lateral line, which is a series of fluid filled canals for sharks to determine water movement.
An epaulette shark!
I then headed into the main part of the aquarium. I walked out onto the main path which looked over several penguin habitats. There were two types of penguins: African penguins and southern rockhopper penguins. The southern rockhopper penguins are the only penguins that dive into the ocean feet first rather than head first.
A Southern Rockhopper Penguin.
After viewing the penguins, I focused on the main tank, which had a catwalk that wound up four stories. There were many fish and two sea turtles. I was also lucky enough to arrive at the same time there were divers in the tank feeding the fish. The divers had buckets with smaller fish and krill. I watched for a while and then headed up to the top of the tank. The aquarium staff had just finished a presentation, so I got to listen to them answer questions relating to tank construction. It was cool to be able to see the top of the tank from above, and soon the diver emerged with the feeding equipment. I then headed outside to the Marine Mammal Center where the sea lions were. These California sea lions are faster than any other type of seal or sea lion, and they seemed pretty intelligent. Several of the trainers got the sea lions to spin and do other tricks.
The sea lion!
Sea Turtle in the large tank; it’s 75-90 years old!
Divers feeding the fish in the large tank.
After heading inside from the Marine Mammal Center, I focused on the smaller tanks scattered around the edges of the building. I think the aquarium did a good job combining education with the exhibits, and I learned a lot about coral and atlantic salmon. Salmon are a keystone species and help the survival of their surrounding ecosystems. Following looking at all the small tanks, I headed down to the gift shop where I got a magnet and a sticker. I headed out of the aquarium, and took the blue line toward Fenway where I ran into many people trying to go to the Red Sox game. I eventually got back to Wellesley, and I definitely will be visiting the aquarium again soon, but maybe on a week day when it’s less busy.
See you soon,
Elise