What is the difference between the cute yellow and white creature, and the one below encased in stone?
Both are fossils, one living and the other extinct! If Ichthyosaur is still alive today, it would be able to dive 600m effortlessly!
At the exhibition area of Sea Aquarium’s latest exhibit, Sea Monsters, visitors can travel back 100 millions of years to witness evolution.
If Boon Yee knew Plesiosaur can swallow its prey in one mouth, he would hesitate to pose so near!
We can watch a plesioaur swim again with Augment Reality, download app “SPH AR”.
At one corner, Nanyang Polytechnic wished to remind us to take care of our environment. Reduce, reuse and recycle!
If you are scared of Jaws (Great White shark), meet its grandpa Megalodon. A whopping 30 times bigger than a Great White!
Just look at the 19cm tooth!
Other giants from the placoderm family, I would not jump into a sea with the 11m monster Placoderm Dunkleosteus! It has beak-like mouth (hard and sharp), just image the painful encounter from a parrot beak (then upsize to Placoderm portion!)
Looks like cockroaches! Only much bigger (multiplies the yuck factor)
A poster depicting the timeline of Sea monsters. Different eras of sea monsters!
Not all dinosaurs and sea monsters are extinct. Some descendants are among us today. Alligator Gar can grow up to 2.5m long! Coelacanth was thought extinct 80million years ago but can still be found today.
The beautiful arowana also has a long history, we spotted a cute hermit crab with a glass roof.
Mudskippers can be spotted at swarms, and I have not seen a live Horse shoe crab moving around before. Its legs are like little forks.
If you are a fan of dinosaur (or Jurassic World), Sea Monsters will be “swimming” till 30Sep.
The friendly class95 DJs. We won a pair of annual tickets in a contest yeah!
We spend the rest of the hour revisiting the other exhibits at Sea Aquarium.
These are not living fossils, but as mesmerizing 🙂
Touch pool, long queue to touch the resident star fish.
Magnifying glass
Spotted local Icons, Chili Crab, and SG50 🙂
Thank you RWS for the informative and Fun invite. Get the latest update from RWS (Resorts World Sentosa) on their Website and Facebook.
Sea Monsters exhibition will end on 30Sep. Click to review our previous Sea Aquarium experience (manta ray feeding).
How often do we get to see Manta Rays feed?
At 2014’s Science Festival, you will get to see the Manta Rays feed at S.E.A Aquarium.
Daddy was invited to a Feeding Frenzy Trail last week. Over 2 hours, participants will better understand the feeding habits of the marine creatures at SEA Aquarium and how the meals are prepared.
We started our tour with Jaws. Different Jaws, different purpose, for chomping, grinding etc. Daddy has a fear of sharks no thanks to Hollywood’s infamous Great White JAWS.
Moray eels are known for their bad attitudes, and you do not want to mess dive with them.
They always look sneaky and nasty behind their lairs, waiting to ambush unsuspecting preys.
Daddy always has a soft spot for the jelly fish. As they pulses and glides across the water tanks, they look so graceful and carefree.
Beware, under their lethargic outlook, Jelly fish’s tentacles are lined with toxins, waiting to sting and paralyse their next meal.
Through the microscopes, we peep into the food chain of the Marine world. Micro organisms (planktons) at the bottom of the food chain are so small yet they can sustain the largest mammals on Earth. Really Amazing!
From Planktons to Krills (small shrimps), some of the feed can actually be cultured. We learn that photosynthesis allows algae to thrive (coated) on the rock surfaces, and some micro organisms will then feast on the algae.
Under the Ocean, big fish eat small fish (大鱼吃小鱼).
Everyone will get a better understanding of marine life and their diet. We try to match a few marine life to their favourite meals.
Cockles, the same fat juicy ones in our Char Kway Teow, are also stingrays’ delights.
We made our way to the roof of Open Ocean.
To Daddy, Feeding Frenzy’s highlight is watching the magnificent Manta Rays surface and swallow their lunch! As it swims up, followed by a school of fish, the aquarist will pour the feed straight into the ray’s mouth.
It looks like a giant vacuum-machine in action, Cool!
Video : Magnificent Manta Rays gliding through the Open Ocean
We see all sorts of seafood in the food preparation area, not unlike our wet market.
The meals will be separated into containers and labelled, and aquarists will then deliver them to the S.E.A Aquarium’s inhabitants.
Portions, schedules, food types and even supplements, everything runs likes clockwork inside the kitchen.
Some other things we learn along the way.
– Aquarists are specialists who look after the fish (definition here)
– Bluetanks (some blue fish) like to peck on the corals, aquarists will coat a layer of Mazuri gel beforehand
– Supplements like garlic and vitamins are mixed in the feed, to help improve fish’s body immune system.
– The freezer is a cool -22 degrees celsius!
We heard the last feed for the day at S.E.A Aquarium is 4pm, and breakfast 8am the next day.
As Feeding Frenzy Trail starts at 8.30am, participants will be be able to witness some of the feeding actions. And since S.E.A Aquarium opens at 10am, the whole aquarium is yours!
Due to bad weather, we could not feed the 20,000 coral fishes at Rainbow reef (Adventure Cove Waterpark). Our kids love their previous snorkeling experiece!
(image credit RWS)
To quote from S.E.A Aquarium : “Dedicated to marine conservation, education and research, S.E.A Aquarium aims to transform the way students learn about marine life through educational programmes catered for students of all levels, by interacting with marine animals and learning from marine life specialists.”
Daddy finds the 2 hours “Feeding Frenzy trail” highly educational and enriching. Do take note that participants are not required to swim or snorkel to feed the fishes.
More details about Feeding Frenzy can be found on Science Festival‘s homepage.
Dates: 20, 26, 27, 28 July and 9, 10 August
Time:8:30am – 10:30am
Pre-registration is required for “Feeding Frenzy Trail” (suitable for kids 6+ )
Telephone: +65 65777515 or Email: public.programmes@rwsentosa.com
(Please quote ‘Feeding Frenzy Trail – SSF 2014) in email subject
Max: 20 pax
Tickets: $20 (excluding admission to S.E.A. Aquarium)
More details about Singapore Science Festival can be found on their website and Fanpage.
1. Science Centre
– Science Ahoy! requires $5 fee per participant and event ends 18th July (Normal Admission charges to Science Centre applies). We recommend Science Ahoy! for kids 6+ as they need to grasp some of the concepts. More photos on our Fanpage.
