Animal Updates – March 1

Between our Baltimore and Washington, DC, venues, more than 17,500 animals representing 900 species call the National Aquarium home. There are constant changes, additions, and more going on behind the scenes that our guests may not notice during their visit. We want to share these fun updates with our community so we’re bringing them to you in our weekly Animal Update posts!

Check our blog every Friday to find out what’s going on… here’s what’s new this week!

Batfish surgery

An orbiculate batfish currently being cared for at our Animal Care Center (ACC) is recovering nicely after being surgecially treated for a lump on his side.

The batfish is one of the many animals we have currently undergoing quarantine before being placed in our Blacktip Reef exhibit! As soon as staff noticed the small mass, they began doing a variety of diagnostic tests, including aspirations , cultures and ultrasounds to try and determine the cause.

Once the mass began to grow, the decision was made by animal health staff to remove it surgically.

We’re happy to report that the fish did well throughout surgery and a 1.5 x 1.5 cm lump was identified and removed. The cyst was sent to our partners at John’s Hopkins to further investigate the cause. The batfish is being treated with pain medication and antibiotics and is has “recovered swimmingly!” After being housed alone for immediate recovery, he is now back with other fish and his scar is barely noticeable!

As you can imagine, surgery on such a fragile and small animal takes patience and precision! We’re lucky to have such a dedicated and talented team to provide the best care for our animals!

We’ll be sure to keep you updated on the condition of our batfish and be sure to tune in next week for another update! 

Happy Birthday, Chesapeake!

National Aquarium is celebrating a very special birthday! Chesapeake, one of our female dolphins, born at the Aquarium on March 7, 1992, is 21 years old today!

Guests can recognize Chesapeake by her short rostrum!

About Chesapeake

Name meaning: She was the first of dolphin to be born at the Aquarium, so our trainers decided to name her in honor of the Chesapeake Bay!

Gender: Female

Weight: 380 pounds

Chesapeake with her calf Bayley shortly after her birth!

Family Tree: Daughter of Shiloh (dam) and Akai (sire), mother to our youngest dolphin, Bayley!

How to Recognize Her: Chesapeake’s body is shorter overall and plump! Guests can recognize her by her short rostrum and slight under bite!

Chesapeake has a shorter overall body than the rest of our dolphins!

Trainer’s Note: Chesapeake is very energetic! She does a lot of high-energy behaviors like flips, breaches and porpoising! She eats about 39 pounds of fish a day!

Can’t come wish Chesapeake a Happy Birthday in person this weekend? Leave her a message on this interactive well wisher wall or on our Facebook page! 

Better yet, spend some one-on-one time with our birthday girl and her friends during our Dolphin Mornings behind-the-scenes immersion tour THIS Saturday, March 9!

Q&A With Aquarium Curator John Seyjagat!

Tomorrow night (March 5) kicks off our annual Marjorie Lynn Bank Lecture Series! The first lecture features John Seyjagat, curator of our Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes exhibit! To give you a sneak preview of tomorrow night’s talk, we sat down with John to get an inside look at his day-to-day work at the Aquarium:

1. How long have you been at the Aquarium? About 10 years.
2. How did you get your current position? I started as a consultant to the Exhibit and Design team back in 2002, and when the curator position became available in 2003, I applied and got the position.
3. Describe a typical day at work for you… I like getting in to enjoy a period of undisturbed work, so I get in at 6 am. I do prep work and get ready to meet my staff at 7:30 am. By 8 am, it is time to work with staff and assist with any animal matters. By 9 am, the exhibit is open and ready to receive the public. At 10 am, our volunteer staff arrives. I give them their daily update and the tools necessary to wow our visitors. In the early afternoon, I again meet with staff for updates and firm up the afternoon routine. Most of my afternoons are dedicated to Biological Programs staff meetings or bigger projects related to the Australia exhibit. By 3 pm, I’ve met with my late shift staff for updates and briefings and planned their night. Even when I leave the Aquarium for the night, I am on my pager 24/7 just in case. That’s a non-hectic, good day!
4. What’s your favorite spot within the Australia exhibit? The area in front of the Barramundi.
   

   The barramundi in our Australia exhibit!

5. If you could trade places professionally with anyone in the world, who would it be and why? Sir David Attenborough. I worked with him on two films and was able to talk extensively with him during both projects. I learned so much about zoo-geography. The guy is as brilliant as he sounds!
6. What is your favorite animal and why? Edentates (mammals that have little to no teeth, such as the sloth) and the silky anteater. This is the animal that dragged me into the zoo world. I was one of two people in the world who kept silky anteaters and wanted to learn more about them.
   

   Sloths are part of the edentate mammal order.

7. What’s one thing very few people know about the Australia exhibit? Its state of the art mechanics can be controlled from a computer or cell phone from anywhere in the world!
8. Any exciting upcoming projects or research you can tell us about? The mouth almighty is the only freshwater cardinalfish in the world and is found in northern Australia and New Guinea. This fish may be the origin of all cardinalfish species, including the endangered Banggai cardinalfish. We are currently partnering with the New Jersey Academy of Aquatic Sciences to research the evolutionary biology of this species group to hopefully make a linkage to the origin of all cardinalfish.

Want to know more about our Australia exhibit and John’s exciting work? Join us tomorrow for his lecture in Baltimore!

All lectures are free for Aquarium donors; $5 for members; and $10 for non-members. Reservations required: 410-659-4230. A light reception will be held at 6:45 pm, followed by the curator’s talk in the Lyn P. Meyerhoff Auditorium.

Animal Updates – March 1

Between our Baltimore and Washington, DC, venues, more than 17,500 animals representing 900 species call the National Aquarium home. There are constant changes, additions, and more going on behind the scenes that our guests may not notice during their visit. We want to share these fun updates with our community so we’re bringing them to you in our weekly Animal Update posts!

Check our blog every Friday to find out what’s going on… here’s what’s new this week!

Hairy Jellies!

These jellies get their name from the fringe of fine, hair-like tentacles that grace the bottom edge of their bell.

The red dots also seen along the bell’s edge of a hairy jelly are its “eyespots.” These clusters of photo-sensitive cells can differentiate between light and dark.

Hair jellies are native to the shallow coastal waters of the north Pacific!

These jellies are currently behind-the-scenes in our jellies lab, but will be on exhibit soon!

Be sure to check back every Friday to find out what’s happening!

Animal Update – February 22

Between our Baltimore and Washington, DC, venues, more than 17,500 animals representing 900 species call the National Aquarium home. There are constant changes, additions and more going on behind the scenes that our guests may not notice during their visit. We want to share these fun updates with our community, so we’re bringing them to you in our weekly Animal Update posts!

Check our blog every Friday to find out what’s going on… here’s what’s new this week!

American bullfrogs in our Maryland: Mountains to the Sea exhibit!

There are three new male bullfrogs in the Allegheny Streams gallery.

Did you know? The bullfrog is the largest native frog species in North America!

Breeding males emit a deep bass booming call, sounding like “roo-roo-room” or “jug-a-rum,” that can be heard over a distance of more than half a mile.

During the long spring and summer breeding season, males aggressively defend territory, wrestling fiercely with rival males and attempting to mate with as many females as possible.

In Maryland, tadpoles over-winter and transform into frogs during the following summer, depending on food availability and water temperature. In the southern parts of the bullfrog’s range, metamorphosis can occur in as few as 79 days, while in the colder northern areas, metamorphosis can take more than three years.

Be sure to check back every Friday to find out what’s happening!