A Blog for the National Aquarium Community
On Monday, a spiny-tail monitor baby hatched in our Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes exhibit backup area! We are so excited to have another baby spiny-tailed monitor join the one that hatched on July 6!
These babies will stay in our backup area in the care of our staff. Although our guests won’t be able to see the young, you can see their parents in the front.
In keeping with our motto to provide professional and excellent care to our animal collection, the staff of the National Aquarium Biological Programs Department Animal Planet Australia and Animal Health jointly carried out annual physical exams on our pair of fresh water whip rays this morning!
The Whip rays (Himantura dalyensis) are 9 years old and measure about 1 meter across. These stingrays are from the Daly River in Northern Territory Australia from which they got their species name.
You can check out the Whip Rays and other interesting species in our Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes exhibit in Baltimore!
Bats are one of the most misunderstood of all creatures, having been long associated with tales of vampiresand other spooky Halloween stories. But did you know bats are actually very amazing and beneficial animals? We’d like you tell the true tale of these creatures and dismiss any rumors of them being blood suckers, or creepy flying goblins of the night!
Bats are mammals and account for more than 25% of all mammalian species. They are the only mammals capable of true flight. But don’t worry; they aren’t flying around in search of human blood. 70% of all bat species eat insects and most of the remaining 30% eat fruit, pollen, and nectar.
So why are they important to us? Bats are very vital to the ecosystems in which they live. They are considered to be the forgotten pollinators. The seed dispersal and pollination activities of fruit and nectar eating bats are vital to the survival of rain forests. And here in North America bats account for the removal of more than 5 tons of insects nightly.
From John Seyjagat, Curator of Australia Exhibits
The National Aquarium’s Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes exhibit was recently awarded best exhibit in 
the North America zoo and aquarium community. As the curator of this exhibit, I must say I am overwhelmingly proud to have received this coveted award given by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) each year– and the first to claim bragging rights, as this project was no easy feat for our exhibit team!
Animal Planet Australia: Wild Extremes is a lot more than a new exhibit. We have harnessed modern technologies, innovative designs, interactive learning, visitor friendly exhibitory and a unique Australian animal and plant collection, to create a one-of-a-kind visitor experience.
There are so many great features to this exhibit. Perhaps my favorite aspect is how the exhibit plays on the “wow” factor by incorporating prey and predators all sharing common spaces. The habitats are alive with color, movement, and noise the unique animals tell stories of their own.
Continue reading ‘From the Curator: National Aquarium wins best exhibit award!’
