Finding Nemo - and his pals

Singapore’s Marine Life Park made a major splash when it opened its doors to visitors at the end of last year. Billed as the biggest oceanarium in the world with a massive 45 million litres of water housing 100,000 marine animals from across 800 different species, the park aims to educate as well as entertain.

Visitors can happily spend hours wandering around the South East Asia Aquarium or have fun on six water slides, a wave pool and tubing at the Adventure Cove Waterpark.

“Marine Life Park places great emphasis on conservation, education and research,” says Biswajit Guha, the park’s conservation and education director.

“With regard to conservation, we aim to use this aquarium to gain knowledge in order to create a better environment for animals and ensure their sustainability. Marine Life Park also responds to animals in need or those who require special care and treatment.

“We offer a discovery tour of the aquarium, through which we provide knowledge about the species. Our open ocean tank is the biggest in the world and allows visitors to enjoy an interactive experience with the creatures,” Guha adds.”

“We’re proud to have the biggest collection of sharks as well as the biggest stingray in the world,” says Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, chairman of the Genting Group, which owns Resorts World Sentosa. “We do everything to sustain the marine life and also meet all local standards to ensure the safety and well-being of every marine creature.”

In March, the park lined up a series of interactive activities focusing on Singapore’s first Marine Biodiversity Week for visitors to the aquarium. Children of all ages came to visit the exhibitions, listened to conservation and biodiversity talks, played games and enjoyed story-telling.

“This Marine Biodiversity Week is part of our commitment to inspire youths to learn more about marine life and be involved in caring for the marine environment. We were encouraged by such an enthusiastic response from our budding marine conservationists and stewards through our Marine Youth Ambassadors programme,” Guha says.

Members of the Thai press junket taking part in the biodiversity week were unfortunately unable to check out the Adventure Cove’s first hydro-magnetic coaster, the Riptide Rocket, due to heavy rain but headed instead for lunch at Starz, one of the many restaurants in Resorts World Sentosa. before touring the aquarium’s 10 different zones that travel from Southeast Asia to the African subcontinent and beyond.

The Strait of Karimata and Java Sea features a shipwreck that has involved into a reef for hundred of fish. The second zone, called Strait of Malacca and Andaman Sea comprises a rich variety of habitats and fauna from coral reefs to mangroves and seagrass beds. It’s also home to marine life that changes sex.

“Some species of fish change from female to male, with the most powerful female in the shoal becoming a male when the male dies,” says our guide, as we enjoy a hands-on interactive experience with the starfish and sea cucumbers.

The Bay of Bengal and Laccadive Sea presents the mangrove ecosystems around the Bay of Bengal, home to mudfish and silver batfish, among others, and portrays with the traditional way of fishing in Sri Lanka. “What they fish goes straight to the dinner table,” says the guide, adding that fish stocks have still not recovered from the 2004 tsunami.

“Many of the fish here can change from female to male too but these also change colour. The most colourful is the king,” says the guide, stopping at “Ocean Journey”, the habitat of Japanese giant crabs and sea jelly. There’s a human in the tank too, but he doesn’t change sex or colour, just continues to feed the fish with small pieces of squid or prawns. 

“Open Ocean” is the centrepiece of the aquarium and boasts the world’s largest aquarium viewing panel – a staggering 36 metres wide, 8.3 metres tall and 70 metres thick – and a showcase of more than 50,000 marine animals. Adjacent to the panel is a large underwater acrylic dome from where we watch giant mantra rays gliding by above our heads. One side of the Open Ocean habitat serves as a wall for the 11 two-storey ocean suites where guests can enjoy five-star service and an underwater-living experience.

We next visit unusual creatures like the sally lightfoot crab, which live in the Arabian Gulf and Arabian Sea, the long-horned cowfish of the Red Sea and the predatory tigerfish of East Africa. The ninth zone is “South China Sea”, a large marine ecosystem characterised by a tropical climate and home to a reef cave into which we crawl to discover the huge moray eels.

The aquarium journey ends at the Shark Seas, home to more than 200 sharks of 12 species including the nurse shark, black-tipped reef shark, bamboo shark, grey reef shark and hammerhead. The guide points out Romeo and Juliet, the biggest sharks of the lot, and we give them a cheerful wave and thumbs up as we bid farewell to the aquarium.

     

 

 

If you go

<< Marine Life Park is part of Resorts World Sentosa. 

<< One day passes to the SEA Aquarium cost SGD 29 (adults) and $20 for kids aged four to 12. Adventure Cove Waterpark is also priced at SGD 29 (adults) and $20 (children)

<< Various promotions are available. Check out www.RWSentosa.com.