Page 100 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Sydney

98  SY DNEY AREA B Y AREA

2 SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium VISITORS’ CHECKLIST

SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium’s themed zones bring visitors Practical Information
close to more than 13,000 animals from 700 species in both Aquarium Wharf, Darling Harbour.
marine and freshwater aquatic environments, including the Map 4 D2. Tel 1800 199 657.
Open 9am–7pm daily (last
world's largest Great Barrier Reef display. The highlight is a adm 6pm). & 7 - =
walk “on the ocean floor” through 100 m (328 feet) of ∑ sydneyaquarium.com.au
underwater tunnels. These allow close observation of sharks, Transport
stingrays and schools of fish, as well as two rare dugongs. The @ Sydney Explorer. g Darling
conservation-focused aquarium also includes penguin Har bour.  Town Hall.
v Paddy’s Markets.
breeding and animal rescue programmes.
as orphaned calves. Visitors can
Platypuses see them from above the water
Endemic to the rivers, in the open­air ocean pool and
streams, billabongs and swimming down to feed in the
lakes of the east coast underwater tunnel.
and Tasmania, the
platypus is an iconic Discovery Rockpool
symbol of Australia. Visitors get the opportunity
When discovered by to gently touch the spiral eggs
Europeans, the animal’s of a Port Jackson shark and
strange collection feel the spongy texture of a
of physical attributes, sea cucumber and the bumpy
including a duck­like bill skin of a starfish while learning
and otter’s tail, was once about the conservation and
Dugongs viewed from the underwater tunnel thought to be some careful handling of sea animals.
kind of elaborate hoax.
Exploring the Aquarium Shark Walk and Shark Valley
Built on a pier in Darling Harbour, Claws Through an underwater tunnel,
SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium This exhibit features the visitors can encounter huge
comprises over 4,000 sq m world’s largest crab species – stingrays, shoals of fish as well
(43,000 sq ft) of exhibition space the Japanese Spider Crab. It as the largest sharks on display
and is one of the largest aquar­ can grow to a claw­to­claw in the aquarium – the critically
iums in the world. Exhibits are span of almost 4 m (13 ft). endangered grey nurse shark.
organised by theme and take
the visitor on a journey through Dugong Island Great Barrier Reef
the different marine habitats An exciting attraction are the two Oceanarium
of the Australian continent, dugongs (sea cows) – only five The world’s largest coral
Habitat zones include South are currently held in captivity. reef extends along 2,300 km
Coast Shipwreck, Sydney Related to elephants, these (1,430 miles) of Australia’s coast.
Harbour, Dugong Island, Shark docile, herbivorous mammals Vibrant blue tangs, clownfish and
Valley and Jurassic Seas. can reach up to 3 m (9.8 ft) in ornate lionfish are on display as
It is worth checking the web­ length and live for more than well as tropical sharks and rays.
site or asking on arrival about 70 years. Named “Pig” and At the end of the oceanarium,
feeding times and talks through­ “Wuru” (an Aboriginal word the floor­to­ceiling Reef Theatre
out the day. For an added cost, meaning “young child”), the glass panel offers an unparalleled
visitors can ride out on a glass­ dugongs were origi nally rescued spectacle of the exotic creatures.
bottom boat to watch and feed
the sharks first hand; take a
20­minute snorkel in a trans par­
ent enclosure; or ride in a raft
through the Penguin Expedition
exhibit, which simulates a rugged
sub­Antarctic environment, albeit
at a more comfortable – though
still chilly – 6 degrees centigrade
(43 degrees Fahrenheit).
Attractions
SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium
offers a great variety of exhibits
and animal encounters. Sharks and hundreds of other fish on view from the Reef Theatre

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