1) You need to attended two shows, they shows are only 15 minutes long. For each show seen you need to write a paragraph summarizing the shows you saw. The first show we attended was hard to understand what diver is trying to say, they mention it also because the water of that tank is so chili. The diver mentioned that a lot of species are living in this tank, which some are benthic and some are pelagic organisms. They mostly talked about the pelagic organisms in that tank. They chose white sea bass as far as giant sea bass and briefly explain about them. There were thousands of sardines and between them the diver point to the fish called half-moon which it was bigger and silver moon. Half-moons are the feeder of red and green algae, also they can eat some small invertebrates like sponges, crustaceans, and anemones. We were told about the giant bass history in Santa Barbara island, which the scientist didn’t see the organism approximately for forty years but the person who was carrying out the show saw it. She mentioned that scientist by creating a space for these organisms in about thirty or forty years in the nice protected area in the ocean to have no pressure in hunting not even boat driving, they wait for a long time for this species to coming back to protected area and scientists of all over California taking pictures of those animals. The diver also talked about the spots of giant sea bass that we could see on the side of fish that they are specific each and individual. At the end, he said white sea bass are more open ocean than giant sea bass. The second show we attended was more interesting for me than the first one. We explored bunch of animal that live there, and talked about some of the organisms that are important and have right force in everything on that tank. We waited for diver to join us to communicate with him. He worn a special mask that allowed him to talk with us. The presenter talked the way that they feed animals, which it was so interesting, the diver goes to target animals and feed them to get the proper diet. The diver mentioned there are six hundred different fishes are living in this tank. The exhibit was so big with 350000 gallons of water. There were two species of shark in that specific exhibit, but they were not like hunting sharks as we see in television. There was an animal that shark close related to which is ray. We saw a diver was feeding those new rays. Rays are related to sharks but they look different. The fishes live in that tank were bony fish and have skeleton. One of them was napoleon wrasse. This organism has a unique adaptation, they all are female and they can change itself to male which this transformation takes about a year. Looks like the name of this fish comes up from the shape it has, because there is a bump on its head that’s why calling it a napoleon wrasse. Bubbles also are another bony fish, that loves to be part of presentation. This fish loves the bubbles and for entire presentation.

1. 1) You need to attended two shows, they shows are only 15
minutes long. For each show seen you need to write a paragraph
summarizing the shows you saw.
The first show we attended was hard to understand what diver is
trying to say, they mention it also because the water of that tank
is so chili. The diver mentioned that a lot of species are living
in this tank, which some are benthic and some are pelagic
organisms. They mostly talked about the pelagic organisms in
that tank. They chose white sea bass as far as giant sea bass and
briefly explain about them. There were thousands of sardines
and between them the diver point to the fish called half-moon
which it was bigger and silver moon. Half-moons are the feeder
of red and green algae, also they can eat some small
invertebrates like sponges, crustaceans, and anemones. We were
told about the giant bass history in Santa Barbara island, which
the scientist didn’t see the organism approximately for forty
years but the person who was carrying out the show saw it. She
mentioned that scientist by creating a space for these organisms
in about thirty or forty years in the nice protected area in the
ocean to have no pressure in hunting not even boat driving, they
wait for a long time for this species to coming back to protected
area and scientists of all over California taking pictures of those
animals. The diver also talked about the spots of giant sea bass
that we could see on the side of fish that they are specific each
and individual.
At the end, he said white sea bass are more open ocean than
giant sea bass.
The second show we attended was more interesting for me than
the first one. We explored bunch of animal that live there, and
talked about some of the organisms that are important and have
right force in everything on that tank. We waited for diver to
join us to communicate with him. He worn a special mask that
allowed him to talk with us. The presenter talked the way that

2. they feed animals, which it was so interesting, the diver goes to
target animals and feed them to get the proper diet. The diver
mentioned there are six hundred different fishes are living in
this tank. The exhibit was so big with 350000 gallons of water.
There were two species of shark in that specific exhibit, but
they were not like hunting sharks as we see in television. There
was an animal that shark close related to which is ray. We saw a
diver was feeding those new rays. Rays are related to sharks but
they look different. The fishes live in that tank were bony fish
and have skeleton. One of them was napoleon wrasse. This
organism has a unique adaptation, they all are female and they
can change itself to male which this transformation takes about
a year. Looks like the name of this fish comes up from the
shape it has, because there is a bump on its head that’s why
calling it a napoleon wrasse. Bubbles also are another bony fish,
that loves to be part of presentation. This fish loves the bubbles
and for entire presentation it was on top of the diver’s head and
playing with bubbles. Coral which is look like a rock was
another animal that lives in this tank, a lot of people think coral
is a plant or algae but that’s a living animal. Coral is one of the
animal that presenter mentioned has important rules in their
environment. Coral grows slowly, for some of them take
thousands of years to grow and succeed to get the size. The
coral we saw in that exhibit was come from state of Arizona.
Corals are very temperature sensitive, and if temperature
increase in the ocean will really hurts the coral population, that
makes an impact on the whole environment. By controlling of
using the phosil fuel and produce less carbon dioxide help the
coral lives.
Each show took approximately 18 minutes and at the end of
each the kids who joined to presentation took a picture with
divers.
2) Key characteristics for planktonic organisms.
Planktonic organism key characteristics
The most important character of plankton organism is that they
are free floating that means they are moving on the way that

3. currents move. Planktonic organism divided into 3 groups:
1. Phytoplankton: they are photosynthetic organism, they are
very different in size between 0.001 mm to 1mm, they have also
different shape from simple to complex. Phytoplanktons are
Primary producers. They live in sunlight area of the ocean
which is approximately upper 100 m. Some phytoplankton like
most algae species can be harmful for ecosystem.
Phytoplanktons are rely on binary fission for propagation.
2. Zooplankton: this group of planktonic organisms contain
single-celled organisms, jellyfish, worms, molluscscrustaceans
and even some types of fish. Different zooplankton species are
living in different depth of ocean. They are very different in
size from less than 1 mm to more than 30 cm. Scientists used
this character of zooplanktons and divided them into three
groups, microzooplankton (less than 0.2 mm), mesozooplankton
(0.2–20 mm in length) and macrozooplankton (longer than 20
mm). Zooplankton have an important role in sea food web.
3. Bacterioplankton: they are living in water column. They have
been eaten by zooplankton.
Some of them are autotrophic which they do photosynthesis and
produce their own food, and some of them are heterotrophs.
Bacterioplankton providing food for the phytoplankton by
breaking down organic material.
3) Key characteristics for nektonic organisms.
Nektonic organism key characteristics:
Nektons are living in deep oceans, and they are active
swimmers means they can swim against the currents. They
mostly have a bladder which helps them to be an active
swimmer. They are in all shapes and sizes which can be
vertebrates and invertebrates. Most of them eat zooplankton.
Nektonic organisms have long life but they grow up slowly.
4) Key characteristics for observed invertebrate organisms.
The most important and general characteristic for invertebrate
organisms is that they lack spinal column and backbone. They
are worldwide and live in various habitats. Some of them

4. regenerate sexually, and some are asexual reproductive. There
are sedentary invertebrates like the sponges, but most of the
organisms are motile.
There are so many invertebrate organisms that we saw in pacific
aquarium. The following is some examples of these kind of
organisms.
Fish-eating anemone: they are living in cool waters. commonly
found on rocks from the low intertidal zone to approximately
160 feet (48.8 meters) deep. They have soft bodies with a
smooth orange-red column which has no spots or attached
shells, sand, or other debris. The column is topped by an oral
disc which the size can be from 8 to 10 inches and column can
have heights up to 8 inches. They have slender, short, white
tentacles possibly tipped with pink or red armed with stinging
cells called nematocysts. The disc is red to pale orange at the
bottom of the tentacles to nearly white around their mouth. A
sticky foot at the bottom of the column is used to adhere to a
substrate. They feed on shrimps, other invertebrates, and small
fishes that they catch by their tentacles.
They have nematocysts, which they are located within the
tentacles, are coiled threads containing venom and having a
barbed end. When prey brushes against tentacles, nematocysts
shoot out, killing or immobilizing the prey. Tentacles then pass
the food into its digestive cavity through the mouth. Undigested
food and waste is released through their mouth. They are
asexually reproducer by splitting either vertically or
horizontally. They also reproduce by spawning eggs or sperm
into the water where, if fertilized, they will develop into
planktonic planula larvae, eventually metamorphosing into an
anemone. They are semi-aggressive, and tend to be solitary.
Their foot allows these anemones to move if current conditions
are not satisfactory or if they are being harassed by predators
such as sea stars. To move, they inflate themselves, detach from
the substrate, and then move along with the current. Fish-eating
anemones can live sixty to eighty years in the wild.
Comb jelly (sea walnut): They generally prefer coastal saltwater

5. habitats in bays and estuarine locations. They found in brackish
water that is low in oxygen content and high in pollution, as
well as in the open ocean waters long distances from land. they
prefer to be near surface waters, but will work its way into
deeper water during periods of rough seas. Their vertical cross
section is bell shaped with the lower margin of the oral lobes
forming the rim of the bell. Their mouth positioned where the
bell clapper. There are wart-like bumps on the walnut shaped
body. This species has eight longitudinal rows of cilia (tiny
movable hairs) that divide the body into eight symmetrical
shapes and also this is the reason of the ability their slow
moving through the water.
There are two fine, filamentous lobes on either side of the
mouth used for feeding that can be retracted into the body. It
has a translucent almost colorless body, it frequently presents a
real color show. The moving cilia refract ambient light into all
colors of the rainbow and bright fluorescent stripes are visible
on the body and at night soft green or blue-green light may be
observed. Maximum length of the sea walnut ranges between
100-120 mm (3.9-4.7 in) but larger specimens have been
reported from the Caspian and Black Seas. The body width is
approximately half of its length. This comb jelly is a major
predator of zooplankton eating up to 10 times its weight per
day. It also eats eggs and larval forms of various invertebrates
and fishes, juvenile fish, copepods, sea jellies, and even other
ctenophores. It feeds by continuing pumping water into its body
cavity trapping small prey on adhesive cells (colloblasts) found
on the tentacles and the inside surface of the two lobes. The
food is then transferred to the mouth for ingestion.
This species is a hermaphrodite that is capable of self-
fertilization. Spawning happens
during summer months and will vary with habitat conditions.
These planktonic animals are movement by currents and wind
and wave action. Primary
activities relate to feeding and reproduction.
If food supply becomes limited, these comb jellies can reduce

6. their physical size and metabolism and therefore reduce food
requirements to the point where they can survive for up to three
weeks on a limited intake of food. Because they are sexually
self-fertilizing it is feasible that a single, displaced specimen
could start a whole new, non-native population.
5) key characteristics for observed vertebrate organisms.
Vertebrates are the most organized organisms on Earth. They
belong to the sub-phylum Vertebrata. They are the most
advanced group of animals. The characteristics that makes
vertebrates special are the presence of the spinal cords,
vertebrae and notochords. Most vertebrates have a very well
developed nervous system. The vertebrates also have muscles
and skeletons which help them move around efficiently.
Vertebrates include most the Phylum Chordata. Vertebrates
have a centralized nervous system. The nervous system consists
of a brain in the head region. It also includes a long spinal cord
that runs from the brain to the tail end of the backbone. Long
nerve fibers extend from the spinal cord to muscles and organs
throughout the body. Following is some examples of these kind
of organisms.
Blue poison dart frog: Adult frogs inhabit small, isolated, dark,
and humid patches in rainforests or near streams, where they are
found attached to moss-covered rocks, in crevices, or under
floating plants. Although they have been observed in trees at
heights up to 16.4 feet (5 meters), the Blue Poison Dart Frog is
usually a ground dweller. The ‘azureus’ form of Dendrobates
tinctorius is a medium-sized frog. It is characterized by its
hunchbacked posture, which is more pronounced in females than
in males, and by its coloration. Its legs are commonly an azure-
blue color, the belly darker blue, and the back sky-blue. An
irregular pattern of various sized black and dark blue spots
cover the background coloration, with many spotting located on
the frog’s back and head. There is a dark blue or black mid-
belly stripe on its ventral surface. The skin of this species is

7. mostly smooth, some areas of the rear ventral surface and thighs
have a granular texture. Each foot has four toes, each of which
has a wide, flattened tip and well developed adhesive pads used
to help the frog grip slippery surfaces. Females have circular
toe-tips, while those of males are heart-shaped. Length snout to
vent: 1.1 to 1.8 inches (3 to 4.5 centimeters), Weigh: about 11
ounces (3 grams). Females are slightly larger than males in both
length and weight. Like most poison dart frogs, this species
uses its vision and tongue to capture prey. Once prey is seen, it
darts out a sticky tongue to zap unsuspecting prey. It eats a
variety of small insects including ants, fruit flies, termites,
young crickets, and tiny beetles. It is uncertain whether ants or
beetles are the source of the chemical substances from which
poison dart frogs derive the “poison” stored in their skin.
‘Azureus’ reaches sexual maturity at ten to twelve months of
age. This morph usually breeds once a year during the rainy
season. Males position themselves on a leaf or rock and quietly
call to attract a female. Females follow these calls to find the
male. If more than one female responds, the females fight over
the male. The victorious female begins the courtship ritual by
gently stroking the selected male’s snout and back with her
front legs. The courtship may include wrestling and chasing. If
courtship is successful, the male leads the female to a secluded,
moist, and mossy area he has chosen that is near a water source
and underneath logs or rocks to mate and lay eggs. The male
climbs onto the female’s back and grasps her with his front
legs. He externally fertilizes the clutch of five to six gelatinous
eggs she lays. Although the female may help, the male is most
commonly the primary caretaker of the eggs. He checks on them
periodically, excreting urine on them to keep them moist. After
a ten- to eighteen-day incubation, the tadpoles hatch. At
hatching they have poorly developed gills, a toothless mouth,
and a tail. The tadpoles wriggle onto their father’s back to be
carried to an individual nest in a small pool of rainwater in a
tree trunk or a cup-like structure in a bromeliad plant. The
tadpoles now begin to metamorphose into froglets. Their gills

8. are grown over by skin, eventually disappearing to be replaced
by lungs. Teeth and rear legs develop. The head becomes more
pronounced and the body elongates. Front legs develop and the
tail becomes a stub. At ten to twelve weeks old, with
metamorphosis complete, a young frog or froglet leaves the
water for a land habitat. ‘Azureus’ is active during the day,
moving constantly in short leaps, but always remaining close to
a water source. Aggressive behavior may include chasing,
vocalizing, and wrestling. Wrestling usually takes place
between two females or two males, but may occur between a
male and a female, usually in the breeding season. The bright
blue coloration of this poison dart frog serves as a warning to
predators not to eat it. Another important adaptation are the
toxins within its skin that are derived from some food items in
its diet.Forsten’s Lorikeet: Their length is up to 23 cm (9 in)
and weight is about 95 gr (3.35 oz) Males and females are
usually similar is size. Forsten’s Lorikeets have a blue head
which is streaked with violet-bluish feathers. Thief cheeks are
also violet-blue. Their breast is plain red or orange depending
on the island inhabited, their nape is bright yellow. Their backs
upper wings, and tail are lime-green. Beak and iris are orange-
red and their feet are gray. Males and females are similar in
coloration. They feed pollen and some nectar, seeds, berries,
fruits and soft-bodied insects and larvae. They drink surface
water and water trapped by leaves. Food is stored in their crop
for short periods to be regurgitated to feed themselves, their
partners, or their chicks. Because they have immature gizzards,
they can only eat soft, non-fibrous foods. Their intestinal tracts
are short and soft food is easily and rapidly digested. Since
most of the food they eat is low in nutrients, they must eat
frequently, and because most of what they eat is regurgitated
liquid, they excrete liquid very frequently. These lorikeets
usually become sexually mature at about two years of age. It is
believed that they form life-long pairs. Courtship is elaborate. It
includes wing fluttering to show underwing patterns, head
bobbing, tail fanning, sway-walking, and beak-fencing. The

9. male emits a low whistle during much of this activity. They
normally nest high in unlined tree hollows, investigating several
cavities before deciding on one that they will line with wood
dust. They are very territorial of their nests. In the Aquarium’s
aviary they nest in specially designed nest boxes and sometimes
in tunnels they dig under rocks and plants. Chicks Fed by their
parents, they remain in the nest for 49-56 days. They become
completely independent about 14 days later. Forsten’s Lorikeets
roost in a centralized location where it is thought the birds
congregate to communicate about discovered food resources, to
find potential mates, and teach feeding techniques to
inexperienced fledglings. Roost sizes vary seasonally. The tips
of their tongues are covered with small surface projections
called papillae, that resemble enlarged taste buds. These
papillae increase the surface area of the tongue, acting like a
sponge. They enable the lorikeet to collect a greater amount of
pollen. The tongue moves very rapidly in and out of the food
source, enabling the bird to collect larger quantities of food and
therefore spending less time feeding. The feet of these birds
have two forward and two backward-facing toes. These,
combined with their strong beaks enable them to be excellent
climbers, hang upside-down, and in general perform an
astonishing array of acrobatics, especially while feeding. Their
life long is 6 to 8 years.
8) Visit one of the touch tanks. Write about what organisms you
saw and what the experience was like touching these organisms.
The first tank we touched was moon jellies which they found
pretty much worldwide and they are very common. I didn’t have
feelings by touching the side of this organism but feeling
tougher by touching the top of it’s body. They feed them daily,
and their food is shrimp. They had semi circles on top which
they are their stomach, typically the number is 4 but they can
have the little as 3 and the most is 8. They have cilia on the side
of their bodies that’s why the stinging cells exists. Jellies are
95% water, which makes them delicate. If they get an air
bubbles stuck underneath we must massage it to get rid of the

10. air bubbles. They don’t have eyes and noises, but they will find
a way by light sensing cells which help them how light and dark
is and gravity sensing cells which help them about depth. So
typically, in day time they live a little bit down and for night
they come up to feed.
9) Does the aquarium have any Aves? If so, which ones did they
have?
Yes, the aquarium has bunch of aves. Unique bird in aviary,
Tufted puffins, Horned puffins, Penguins, Guam kingfisher,
Lorikeets, Shorebird Sanctuary, Black-bellied plover, Western
Snowy Plover, Killdeer, Ruddy Duck.
10) summary of exhibits visited.
There are different exhibit in pacific aquarium which some are
outdoor and some are indoor. Some of the outdoor exhibit that I
visited were the water future exhibit help us to understand
where the water come from and what we must do to save it for
our future generation. There was a three-dimensional watershed
model, so we could “make it rain” to learn about what happens
to the water as it lands on our mountains and flows across the
land to the ocean.
By following the walkway past Lorikeet Forest we saw another
exhibit which it was harbor trace, that include a very popular
stop, which it was the moon jelly tank. We have been told that
the toxins in this jelly’s stinging cells are not strong enough to
penetrate human skin, so they are safe to touch. June Keyes
Penguin Habitat, the exhibit is the home of twenty Magellanic
Penguins and include a rocky area, beach, and a pool for
swimming, and nesting areas that resembles the penguins’
natural habitat. The ocean science center exhibit was so
interesting for me, they use a science in a sphere, which
reminds me the earth, from the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to sightsee our planet and
tell stories about ocean phenomena and their impacts like sea
level rise, maritime trade, and conservation. The Molina animal
care center was another interesting exhibit. We saw the way that
they are doing surgery on marine animals. It features with

11. advance digital equipment. The shark lagoon was another
outdoor exhibit. It was the home of rays, large sharks, and shark
touch pools. I felt sand paper by touching the sharks in shark
touch pool but it was just kind of tooth that they have on their
skin.
The indoor exhibits were Southern California/ Baja Gallery, and
the Northern pacific Gallery. Southern California/ Baja Gallery
is spreading 800 miles from Oregon to Mexico, California’s
coastal waters include a variety of ecosystems, animals, and
temperatures. The exhibit includes warm bays and lagoons,
mangrove forests, and giant kelp forests. Because of the
diversity of habitats found along the coast, a large variety of
species are found within California and Baja California waters.
The Southern California/Baja Gallery represents this diverse
marine environment in 18 exhibits. The Northern Pacific
Gallery is Home to the adorable otter and the mysterious giant
Pacific octopus. The Northern Pacific Gallery features 16
exciting exhibits including The largest species of octopus in the
world, these intelligent and mysterious creatures grow to over
20 feet (6.1 m) and may weigh more than 100 pounds (45 kg).
14