Visiting The S.E.A Aquarium, Resorts World Sentosa Singapore
By Elin Chow - Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Photo By: Elin Chow
Continuing from my journey at the Maritime Experiential Museum at the Resorts World Sentosa Singapore, my husband and I proceeded to visit the S.E.A Aquarium next. So, as promised, be prepared to dive deep and uncover the mysteries and beauty of the oceans with us now!
S.E.A Aquarium
The S.E.A Aquarium is the second largest aquarium in the world featuring more than 100,000 marine animals of over 800 species, across 10 different zones in 49 different habitats.
Straits of Karimata & Java Sea
The first exhibit zone of the S.E,A Aquarium features a shipwreck habitat from the waters of Java Sea. Shipwrecks are pretty common in these waters as seafarers used to transport spices and silk from Southeast Asia to trade them around the world. While shipwrecks are said to destroy coral reefs, it can also be home to a wide array of marine species.
Shark Seas
Looking through a viewing window is a large shark exhibit showcasing several species of the ocean's top and endangered predators, including the Scalloped Hammered Head Shark, Silvertip Shark and Sandbar Shark.
Silvertip Shark is a large species of requiem shark that is widely distributed across the tropical Indian and Pacific Oceans. As an aggressive and powerful apex predator, the Silvertip shark has been regarded as potentially dangerous to humans, especially in the presence of food.
The Panther Grouper, Humpback Grouper or Australian Barramundi Cod is a rare species of grouper commonly found throughout the tropical waters of the Central-Indo-West Pacific regions. Its distinctive white body with beautiful black polka dots makes the Panther Grouper impossible to mix up with other fishes.
Coral Garden
Next, get ready to be transported into the colorful world of corals and reef fishes in the Andaman region.
Often called the "rainforests of the sea", coral reels form some of the most diverse underwater ecosystem on Earth where it is home to a large variety of marine life.
Posing for a picture in front of the Coral Garden is definitely not an easy task for us. We were basically surrounded by dozen and dozen of excited visitors who were fighting for their turn to pose and have their pictures taken at every spot. When we finally have a chance, I rushed to have my picture taken. But sadly, I could not find myself smiling.
One of Coral Reef inhabitant is the Bluestripe Snapper. Bluestripe Snapper or Blue-line Snapper is a widespread species of snapper native to the Indian and Pacific Ocean.
Bay of Bengal
Located just beside the Coral Garden is the Bay of Bengal - home to the Sundarbans Mangrove Forest. The Sundarbans, covering 10,000 square kilometers, is the largest contiguous mangrove forest in the world and home to many different species of birds, mammals, insects, reptiles and fishes.
Laccadive Sea
Further in, we came upon a patch reef displaying beautiful and colorful brain corals formation, similar to those found in the Laccadive Sea.
I was deeply captivated by the brain Coral . Again, it is not a surprise to find the reef teeming with marine life.
With a bold blue body covered with bright yellow horizontal stripes, the Imperator Angelfish is undoubtedly some of the most beautiful fish species found living amongst the colorful coral reefs. Imperator Angelfish, also known as Emperor Angelfish are widely distributed in the waters of Indian and Pacific Oceans, spanning across the Red Sea to Hawaii and Austral Islands.
Fishes swimming in schools at impressive speed!
I am glad that I managed to pose and get a better picture this time round.
Ocean Journey
Next, we journey deeper down into the ocean to discover and meet some of the most wondrous and unusual species on the Planet.
The Japanese Giant Spider Crab is a species of marine crab native to the waters of the Southern Coast of Honshu. Known to be one of the largest living arthropods, the Japanese Giant Spider Crab can grow to around 3.8 metres (12ft) from claw to claw and weight as much as 19 kilograms (42 Ibs).
As you walked further down the dimly lit hallway, be mesmerized by various sea jellies species, one of the most graceful dancers of the sea. Amazingly, it seems that jellyfish have the ability to glow beautifully in the dark waters too!
White Spotted Jelly has very mild venom but does not pose a threat to humans.
Japanese Sea Nettles, also known as the Northern Sea Nettle or Brown Jellyfish is a jellyfish species native to the waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
Open Ocean
The centerpiece of the S.E.A Aquarium is the world's biggest Open Ocean tank offering a panoramic view of ocean. Containing more than 18,000,000 liter (4,000,000 imperial gallons) of water, the Open Ocean tank is home to over 50,000 marine creatures.
Manta Rays are large eagle rays found in both tropical and sub-tropical in all major oceans and seas around the world. Often known for its enormous size, Manta Rays are rarely kept in captivity. In fact, there are actually very few aquariums in the world that are large enough to house these gigantic creatures. Thus, I am really glad that the S.E.A Aquarium is actually one of the very few aquarium capable of housing the Manta Rays.
Thanks to the S.E.A Aquarium, I was able to observe the Manta Rays at such a close range.
The depth of field is so deep that I feel as if I was on the cavernous ocean floor. I believe I could just sit in front of the enormous spotless glass panel, staring at the stunning ocean scenery for hours.
It was such a delightful sight to see hundreds of colorful and playful fishes happily swimming all around us!
A blue lobster! I was really surprised and amazed to see a blue lobster in the S.E.A Aquarium!
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean. Covering an area of 3,500,000 square kilometers, the South China Sea is the home to over 3,300 species of fishes.
Pterois, commonly known as Lionfish, is a venomous marine fish native to the Indo-Pacific. Lionfish are known for its venomous fin rays which can cause systemic effects such as extreme pain, nausea, vomiting, fever, breathing difficulties, convulsions, dizziness, headache, numbness, heartburn and diarrhea to humans. Fatalities are common among young children and elderly. particularly those who are known to have a weaker immune system.
Moray Eel is a large species of eel found in both deep and shallow waters in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Despite its snake-like appearance, Moray eels are actually not reptile but are fish.
Being extremely shy and secretive in nature, Moray eels are known to have spend most of its time hiding in burrows and crevices amongst the rocks and corals deep down on the ocean floor. It is a carnivorous animal, subsisting on a diet consisting of only meat.
Although Moray eels are not aggressive in nature, I was still intimidated by its fearsome appearance.
Final Thoughts
The S.E.A Aquarium offers a great opportunity for people of all ages to get an up close experience with some of the most majestic and unusual creatures of the sea. This is undoubtedly one of the best aquarium I have visited in my life and I would definitely recommend this attraction to anyone who love marine life!
Would I ever visit the S.E.A Aquarium again in the future? Well, probably yes, if someone is kind enough to sponsor my entire trip from Malaysia to Singapore. As much as I wanted to, Singapore is just way too expensive for me to visit again.
