Sea Life Park Hawaii is a

marine mammal Marine mammals are aquatic mammals that rely on the ocean and other marine ecosystems for their existence. They include animals such as seals, whales, manatees, sea otters and polar bears. They are an informal group, unified only by their ...

park,

bird sanctuary An animal sanctuary is a facility where animals are brought to live and to be protected for the rest of their lives. Pattrice Jones, co-founder of VINE Sanctuary defines an animal sanctuary as "a safe-enough place or relationship within the cont ...

and

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

in Waimānalo near Makapuʻu Point, north of

Hanauma Bay Hanauma (; ) is a marine embayment formed within a tuff ring and located along the southeast coast of the Island of Oahu in the Hawaii Kai neighborhood of East Honolulu, in the Hawaiian Islands. Hanauma is one of the most popular tourist des ...

on the island of

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The park first opened in 1964, and includes exhibits that let visitors interact with the animals by swimming with

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the b ...

sea lion Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

s, and

ray Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (gr ...

s, taking a sea safari in the aquarium, and feeding the

sea turtle Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...

s. The park was acquired in 2008 and is operated by

Palace Entertainment Palace Entertainment is a subsidiary of Madrid, Spain based Parques Reunidos which operates various attractions including amusement parks, zoos, and water parks around the world. Palace Entertainment is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is ...

, the U.S. subsidiary of

Parques Reunidos Parques Reunidos (meaning "Reunited Parks") is an international entertainment operator based in Madrid, Spain. The group operates over 60 parks in about dozen countries. Parques Reunidos operates theme and amusement parks, zoos, water parks, fam ...

from

Dolphin Discovery A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...

, which had acquired it in 2005.

Exhibits and facilities

The Hawaiian Reef Aquarium is a tank that is home to more than 2000 reef animals, including sharks, stingrays, turtles, and schools of tropical fish. The Hawaiian Ocean Theater is the venue for the main shows, which includes dolphins, penguins, and sea lions. The shows include information about the newest training techniques and about the park's conservation efforts. The Penguin Habitat is home to the park's penguins, which are part of the

Association of Zoos and Aquariums The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), originally the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums, is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1924 and dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in ...

Species Survival Plan The American Species Survival Plan or SSP program was developed in 1981 by the (American) Association of Zoos and Aquariums to help ensure the survival of selected species in zoos and aquariums, most of which are threatened or endangered in the ...

for the

Humboldt penguin The Humboldt penguin (''Spheniscus humboldti'') is a medium-sized penguin. It resides in South America, its range mainly contains most of coastal Peru. Its nearest relatives are the African penguin, the Magellanic penguin and the Galápagos pen ...

. Visitors can interact with the animals at the Sea Turtle Feeding Pool, Sting Ray Lagoon, Swim with the Sea Lions and Swim with dolphins pools. The Dolphin Cove Show features an open-air theater from which visitors can watch dolphin performances. The Bird Sanctuary is home to many wild marine birds including "iwa" (

great frigatebird The great frigatebird (''Fregata minor'') is a large seabird in the frigatebird family. There are major nesting populations in the tropical Pacific (including the Galapagos Islands) and Indian Oceans, as well as a tiny population in the South A ...

s),

booby A booby is a seabird in the genus ''Sula'', part of the family Sulidae. Boobies are closely related to the gannets (''Morus''), which were formerly included in ''Sula''. Systematics and evolution The genus ''Sula'' was introduced by the Fre ...

s, shearwaters, and

albatross Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds related to the procellariids, storm petrels, and diving petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). They range widely in the Southern Ocean and the North Pac ...

es, most of which came to the sanctuary sick or injured. Visitors can see how these birds are cared for and rehabilitated. The Hawaiian Monk Seal Habitat lets visitors see these native animals, and interact with the trainers before and after the shows.

Activities

Sea Life Park Hawaii includes several programs that let visitors interact directly with the animals in the water. All programs are run several times daily.
*Dolphin Royal Swim Program, Dolphin Swim Adventure, Dolphin Encounter, and Dolphin Aloha all let visitors interact directly with dolphins in the water. *Sea Lion Discovery lets visitors swim and play with sea lions in the water. Visitors are also taught the signalling system used by the trainers to communicate with these animals. *Sea Trek Adventure is an underwater stroll in the Hawaiian Reef Tank, surrounded by eels, stingrays, sea turtles, and numerous other reef species. *Ray Training Demonstration is and experience where you can train stingrays and interact with them and perform operant conditioning. *Penguin Habitat & Penguin Trainer Talk Be able to interact with penguins and hear a brief history of them as well as learn how they swim and play with each other. *Park Conservation Tour Wonderful Tour around the park and has educational history of each creature and the history on how it ties with the park on the conservation and preservation to marine life *Shark Encounter Adventure Tour Visitors will receive a narrated tour of the East Side of the Island and scuba diving with Hawaiian Sharks with transportation in a chauffeur driven style, newer model, all black, air-conditioned, and fully insured, Royal Hawaiian Limousine luxury vehicle! ''Conservation'' Sea Life Park Hawaii is active in several conservation areas, including the release of adolescent green sea turtles that were hatched and raised at the park, hundreds of which are released into the wild each year. The park's last spinner dolphin was released in 1983.

Gallery

View from Makapuu Point, Oahu, Hawaii - panoramio.jpg, Sea Life Park Baby wolphin by pinhole.jpeg, Baby wolphin at Sea Life Park

References

External links

* {{authority control 1964 establishments in Hawaii Aquaria in Hawaii Buildings and structures in Honolulu County, Hawaii Zoos in Hawaii Tourist attractions in Honolulu County, Hawaii Zoos established in 1964 Buildings and structures completed in 1964 Palace Entertainment