Aquarium of the Pacific Debuts New Exhibit

Sea turtles, glowing reefs, and a day octopus, oh my! The Aquarium of the Pacific is debuting a new exhibit called Coral Reefs: Nature’s Underwater Cities that will run until April 2022. 

The exhibit highlights critically important coral reef ecosystems, a habitat that faces a lot of threats in terms of ocean warming, pollution, overfishing,” said Nate Jaros, the Curator of Fish and Vertebrates at the aquarium.

“One of the most diverse habitats on earth that is critically reliant on coral itself. It’s a habitat, food and resources for all creatures.”

This exhibit highlights different roles for different creatures but all working together makes for a healthy coral reef system

Animals you can visit include: corals, flashlight fish, pom-pom crabs and of course, corals. A majority of the wildlife have been rescued and rehabilitated.

The exhibit was ready to open at the beginning of the pandemic but the Aquarium temporarily closed its doors. Staff used this time to add new animals and features.

In the Honda Pacific Visions Theatre, you can watch the Aquarium’s new show ‘Our Future is in Cities : On Land and in the Ocean.’ and learn about how we can protect the coral reefs. The Pacific Visions Art Gallery has an interactive digital exhibit where you can digitally color a fish and send it to swim in a virtual coral reef projector.

The Aquarium of the Pacific is located at  100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach, CA 90802. The hours are Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Friday – Sunday 9.a.m – 8 p.m. Reservations are required and CDC guidelines must be followed. For more information, you can visit the Aquarium’s website here.