The Iciest Waters in the Aquarium
Touch Pool
1Crawl Tunnel Viewing Windows
3Kelp Forest
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Cold ocean waters teem with fish and marine mammals, just as they do in Cold Water Quest. Beneath our waves curious animals like Australian weedy sea dragons, garibaldi damselfish and Japanese spider crabs hang among rocky ledges and kelp forests. This gallery is home to some of the world’s coldest ocean animals, including sea otters, penguins and more.
Our Southern sea otter exhibit in Cold Water Quest has doubled in size and now includes a deck for trainer-animal interactions and a sneak peek window that shows behind-the-scenes. The African penguin exhibit features more than 25 nesting areas integrated into naturalistic rockwork equipped with a state-of-the-art lighting system that mimics the natural light cycle from twilight to moonlight. Acrylic tunnels and pop-up windows, built into the exhibit, allow guests to come face-to-face with their feathered favorites. Last but not least, our beluga whale exhibit contains subarctic-temperature water as well as harbor seals — gregarious ambassadors for marine conservation efforts.
Fast Fact
The longspine snipefish has a long snout that makes up about one-quarter of its body length. Its mouth is at the tip of the snout.