UnderWater World, Queensland
# Sea Life Sunshine Coast at Mooloolaba, Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia is a marine mammal park, oceanarium and wildlife sanctuary. Sea Life Sunshine Coast is an institutional member of the Zoo and Aquarium Association (ZAA). The attraction is a Sea Life Centre owned by Merlin Entertainments, and is globally referred to as Sea Life Sunshine Coast by the firm. It was formerly known as UnderWater World. History UnderWater World officially opened in 1989. Several scenes in the Jackie Chan 1996 film '' Police Story 4: First Strike'' were shot in the park, including a scene in the main aquarium. In one of the scenes a tourist family is visible in the reflection on one of the tanks. During the period of Christmas on 2006 UnderWater World had a giant squid preserved in a block of ice on display. In July 2013, UnderWater World's owners, Merlin Entertainments, announced that they would be spending $6.5 million on the refurbishment of the facilities. As part of the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mooloolaba, Queensland
Mooloolaba is a coastal suburb of Maroochydore in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It is located north of the state capital, Brisbane, and is part of the Maroochydore urban centre. In the , Mooloolaba had a population of 7,730 people. Geography Mooloolaba is bounded on the east by the Coral Sea, on the south by the Mooloolah River, on the north by Alexandra Headland and to the west by Buderim. Mooloolaba Harbour (near the mouth of the Mooloolah River, ) is the home of a large fleet of fishing vessels, as well as being the northern base for the pilot vessels that control shipping through Moreton Bay and the Port of Brisbane. Due to its sheltered location in the lee of Point Cartwright, it is an all-weather harbour favoured by recreational sailors. The esplanade facing Mooloolaba beach is a centre for tourist activity, containing the Sea Life marine park (), as well as many souvenir and clothing shops, bookshops, galleries and restaurants. Behind the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Grey Reef Shark
The grey reef shark (''Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos'', sometimes misspelled ''amblyrhynchus'' or ''amblyrhinchos'') is a species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae. One of the most common reef sharks in the Indo-Pacific, it is found as far east as Easter Island and as far west as South Africa. This species is most often seen in shallow water near the drop-offs of coral reefs. It has the typical "reef shark" shape, with a broad, round snout and large eyes. It can be distinguished from similar species by the plain or white-tipped first dorsal fin, the dark tips on the other fins, the broad, black rear margin on the tail fin, and the lack of a ridge between the dorsal fins. Most individuals are less than long. The grey reef shark is a fast-swimming, agile predator that feeds primarily on free-swimming bony fishes and cephalopods. Its aggressive demeanor enables it to dominate many other shark species on the reef, despite its moderate size. Many grey reef sharks have a ho ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Australian Sea Lion
The Australian sea lion (''Neophoca cinerea''), also known as the Australian sea-lion or Australian sealion, is a species of sea lion that is the only endemic pinniped in Australia. It is currently monotypic in the genus '' Neophoca'', with the extinct Pleistocene New Zealand sea lion '' Neophoca palatina'' the only known congener. With a population estimated at around 14,730 animals, the Wildlife Conservation Act of Western Australia (1950) has listed them as “in need of special protection”. Their Conservation status is listed as endangered. These pinnipeds are specifically known for their abnormal breeding cycles, which are varied between a 5-month breeding cycle and a 17-18 month aseasonal breeding cycle, compared to other pinnipeds which fit into a 12-month reproductive cycle. Females are either silver or fawn with a cream underbelly and males are dark brown with a yellow mane and are bigger than the females. Distribution Australian sea lions are sparsely distributed ac ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Australian Fur Seal
The brown fur seal (''Arctocephalus pusillus''), also known as the Cape fur seal, South African fur seal and Australian fur seal, is a species of fur seal. Description The brown fur seal is the largest and most robust member of the fur seals. It has a large and broad head with a pointed snout that may be flat or turned up slightly. They have external ear flaps (pinnae) and their whiskers (vibrissae) are long, and may extend backward past the pinnae, especially in adult males. The fore flippers are covered with sparse hair over about three-quarters of their length. The hind flippers are short relative to the large body, with short, fleshy tips on the digits. The size and weight of the brown fur seal depends on the subspecies. The Southern African subspecies is on average slightly larger than the Australian subspecies. Males of the African subspecies (''A. p. pusillus'') are in length on average and weigh . Females are smaller, averaging in length and typically weighing .Kin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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New Zealand Fur Seal
''Arctocephalus forsteri'' (common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New Zealand. The name ''New Zealand fur seal'' is used by English speakers in New Zealand; ''kekeno'' is used in the Māori language. , the common name long-nosed fur seal has been proposed for the population of seals inhabiting Australia. Although the Australian and New Zealand populations show some genetic differences, their morphologies are very similar, and thus they remain classed as a single species. After the arrival of humans in New Zealand, and particularly after the arrival of Europeans in Australia and New Zealand, hunting reduced the population to near-extinction. Description Males have been reported as large as 160 kg; their average weight is about 126 kg.Harcourt, R.G., (2001)"Advances in New Zealand mammalogy 1990– ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Brown Whipray
The brown whipray (''Maculabatis toshi'') is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae, common in inshore, muddy habitats along the northern coast of Australia. It has often been confused in literature for the honeycomb stingray (''H. uarnak'') and the black-spotted whipray (''H. astra''), which until recently was thought to be the same species. This species has an angular, diamond-shaped pectoral fin disc and a long, very thin tail without fin folds. It is plain brown above, sometimes with white dots or flecks near the edge of the disc, and white below; the tail is dark all over, with alternating dark and light bands near the tip. The maximum recorded disc width is . The diet of the brown whipray consists of crustaceans and small bony fishes. Reproduction is aplacental viviparous; females produce litters of 1–2 young and supply them with histotroph (" uterine milk") during gestation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed the brown wh ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Trevally
The Carangidae are a family of ray-finned fish which includes the jacks, pompanos, jack mackerels, runners, and scads. It is the largest of the six families included within the order Carangiformes. Some authorities classify it as the only family within that order but molecular and anatomical studies indicate that there is a close relationship between this family and the five former Perciform families which make up the Carangiformes. They are marine fishes found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. Most species are fast-swimming predatory fishes that hunt in the waters above reefs and in the open sea; some dig in the sea floor for invertebrates. The largest fish in the family, the greater amberjack, ''Seriola dumerili'', grows up to 2 m in length; most fish in the family reach a maximum length of 25–100 cm. The family contains many important commercial and game fish, notably the Pacific jack mackerel, ''Trachurus symmetricus'', and the other jack mackerels ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lutjanus
''Lutjanus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish, snappers belonging to the family Lutjanidae. They are found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. They are predatory fish usually found in tropical and subtropical reefs, and mangrove forests. This genus also includes two species that only occur in fresh and brackish waters. Taxonomy ''Lutjanus'' was created in 1790 by the German physician and zoologist Marcus Elieser Bloch with ''Lutjanus lutjanus'' as its type species by tautonymy. It is the type genus of the subfamily Lutjaninae and the family Lutjanidae. The name is derived from a local Indonesian name for snappers, ''ikhan Lutjang''. Bloch erroneously stated that the type locality for ''L. lutjanus'' was Japan when the name he gave it suggested that it was collected in the East Indies. A taxonomic study of snappers within the subfamily Lutjaninae in the tropical western Atlantic Ocean indicated that the at monotypic genera ''Ocyurus'' and ''Rhomboplites'' sit with ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Potato Cod
The potato grouper (''Epinephelus tukula''), also called the potato cod or potato bass, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a grouper from the subfamily Epinephelinae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. It has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution. Description The potato grouper has a standard length which is 2.9 to 3.5 times its depth. It has a slightly convex region between the eyes and the dorsal profile of the head is straight. The preopercle is rounded or subangular and it has slightly enlarged serrations at its corner while the gill cover has a straight upper margin. There are 11 spines and 14-15 soft rays in the dorsal fin and three spines and eight rays in the anal fin. The membranes between the dorsal fin spines are notched. The caudal fin is rounded. This species is pale brownish-grey in overall colour and it is covered in large dark widely separated blotches. Dark lines radiate out from the eyes and there are small da ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Giant Grouper
The giant grouper (''Epinephelus lanceolatus''), also known as the Queensland grouper, brindle grouper or mottled-brown sea bass, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a grouper from the subfamily Epinephelinae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. It has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution and is one of the largest extant species of bony fish. Description The giant grouper has a robust body which has a standard length equivalent to 2.4 to 3.4 times its depth. The dorsal profile of the head and the intraorbital area are convex, The propercle has a rounded corner and a finely serrated margin. The gill cover has a convex upper margin. There are 11 spines and 14-16 soft rays in the dorsal fin while the anal fin has 3 spines and 8 soft rays. The caudal fin is slightly rounded. There are 54 to 62 scales in its lateral line. The adults are grayish-brown in colour overlain with a mottled pattern and with darker fins. The small ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Batoidea
Batoidea is a superorder of cartilaginous fishes, commonly known as rays. They and their close relatives, the sharks, comprise the subclass Elasmobranchii. Rays are the largest group of cartilaginous fishes, with well over 600 species in 26 families. Rays are distinguished by their flattened bodies, enlarged pectoral fins that are fused to the head, and gill slits that are placed on their ventral surfaces. Anatomy Batoids are flat-bodied, and, like sharks, are cartilaginous fish, meaning they have a boneless skeleton made of a tough, elastic cartilage. Most batoids have five ventral slot-like body openings called gill slits that lead from the gills, but the Hexatrygonidae have six. Batoid gill slits lie under the pectoral fins on the underside, whereas a shark's are on the sides of the head. Most batoids have a flat, disk-like body, with the exception of the guitarfishes and sawfishes, while most sharks have a spindle-shaped body. Many species of batoid have developed th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ornate Wobbegong
The ornate wobbegong (''Orectolobus ornatus'') is a species of carpet shark that lives in Australia and possibly other countries in the Western Pacific Ocean. It is coloured golden brown, yellow-green and blueish-grey, and it grows to maximum . Described by Charles Walter De Vis in 1883, it is similar in appearance to other Australian wobbegongs and has previously been classified as the same species as the Gulf wobbegong. It is a nocturnal species, hunting at night, and it can bite humans when disturbed. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed it as a least-concern species. Taxonomy The ornate wobbegong was described by Charles Walter De Vis in 1883. It was previously assumed to be the juvenile form of the Gulf wobbegong (''Orectolobus halei''), due to similarities between the two species. However, there are multiple differences: for example, the ornate wobbegong is smaller, has a smaller head relative to its body, and is less freckled. "Banded wobbe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |