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The National Aquarium
| Article
# : |
20568 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
11 / 1992 |
2,356 Words |
| Author
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Richard Nowitz And Varda Avnisan
Richard Nowitz and Varda Avnisan are a husband and wife team
specializing in travel and editorial photography. Nowitz is a
contributing photographer to National Geographic World and has
produced several coffee table and guide books on countries
around the world; Avnisan writes natural history and
nonfiction books for children. |
Two glass roofs become visible long before on reaches the harbor, towering against the sky, reflecting the midday sun. With its striking architecture, the Baltimore National Aquarium reigns majestically over that city's Inner Harbor, luring millions of visitors since its opening in 1981.
The state-of-the-art facility houses some five hundred species of fish, birds, reptiles, plants, and marine mammals. Two million gallons of filtered water sustain five thousand specimens in the aquarium, one of the world's most sophisticated.
The underlying theme of the aquarium's exhibits is the unity of life through water: All creatures depend on water for their survival. This theme is enhanced through the sheer variety of pools, tanks, and displays.
The outdoor seal pool is the first hint of what waits inside. Harbor and gray seals live in this enormous pool. Feeding time (11:00 A.M. and 3:00 P.M. daily) is a noisy event relished by loitering tourists enjoying the harbor view.
Once inside, an underwater world comes alive in the darkened corridors where glowing tanks, with excellent explanatory signs and charts, allow visitors to stay dry on this underwater adventure. Escalators and moving ramps take people through the dimly lit seven levels of the main building, and a skyway bridge connects to the newly opened Marine Mammal Pavilion.
Dominating the aquarium's main building is the world's largest stingray exhibit. Visible from ground level as well as from three overhead terraces and one underwater-level window, fifty rays perform a graceful ballet in a huge saltwater pool.
The local ecosystem of Maryland has not been overlooked. The exhibit Mountains to the Sea traces the water flow, fish, and animals from the Allegheny Mountain ponds to tidal marshes on the Eastern Shore, ending in the continental shelf of the Atlantic.
The aquarium excels in showing the different adaptations and survival techniques used by the creatures of the deep. Highlights include symbiotic clown fish, playfully darting between the poisonous tentacles of the beautiful sea anemones and inviting less knowing, less fortunate fish to follow; the pinecone fish pulsating light in the dark to scare predators and attract a free lunch; and the electric eel. The eel, which has organs that
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