Vancouver Aquarium Babies

Several weeks ago, I wrote a short piece about the Vancouver Aquarium’s new exhibit, Babies. After looking through the photos I was sent for inclusion in the article, I became curious as to what the exhibit was all about.

Baby striped seahorses
[Baby striped seahorses]

Fast-forward to yesterday morning’s visit to Babies at the Aquarium. I left the exhibit with a new sense of awe over these tiny creatures new to the world. Baby striped seahorses are kept in a separate upper portion of the tank, while their dads proudly pose outside the ‘nursery’, close to the bottom.

Striped seahorse fathers

Striped seahorse father

The clown anemone fish are still tiny specks of orange; here’s a photo of the ‘teenagers’ amongst them in the tank.

Young Clownfish Anemonefish

Clown fish and seahorses aside, this exhibit also features baby squid, poison frogs, tiny moon jellies floating away from the polyps, sculpins, and caecilians – little-understood worm-like creatures with a campaign aimed to support their research.

Opalescent squid
[Opalescent squid]

Poison froglet
[Poison froglet in centre]

Moon jelly polyps
[Moon jelly polyps]

Baby Caecilians ("It's not a worm, nor an eel")
[Baby Caecilians: “They’re not worms, nor eels”

Young sculpins
[Young sculpins]

Aquarium staff are on hand to help explain some of the lesser known creatures and their growth cycles. The Aquarium has been breeding thousands of these animals for over 55 years. Hundreds of sea creatures are introduced there each year, and this exhibit helps to celebrate their arrival as well as learn about the research and conservation going on behind the scenes.

Vancouver Aquarium Babies

Babies runs through May 6 at the Aquarium and includes several films to help tell the story of baby sea creatures. Check the website for daily showtimes and admission information.

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