Sea Life Sunshine Coast at Mooloolaba, Sunshine Coast,

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

is a marine mammal park,

oceanarium An oceanarium can be either a marine mammal park, such as Marineland of Canada, or a large-scale Public aquarium, aquarium, such as the Lisbon Oceanarium, presenting an ocean habitat with marine (ocean), marine animals, especially large ocean dwe ...

and

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animals and uncultivated plant species which can exist in their natural habitat, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introdu ...

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

. 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 Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...

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 process, the aquarium was rebranded as a Sea Life Centre and relaunched in December 2013.

Exhibits

Some examples of the largest exhibits at the aquarium include: ;Ocean Tunnel A moving walkway in an shark tunnel under the

takes visitors past several viewing windows, with fish swimming all around the walkway. The exhibit includes three separate habitats: coral reef, cave and open ocean. Its residents include grey nurse sharks, tawny nurse sharks,

grey reef shark The grey reef shark or gray reef shark (''Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos'', sometimes misspelled ''amblyrhynchus'' or ''amblyrhinchos'') is a species of requiem shark, in the family (biology), family Requiem shark, Carcharhinidae. One of the most com ...

s, whitetip reef sharks,

blacktip reef shark The blacktip reef shark (''Carcharhinus melanopterus'') is a species of requiem shark, in the family (biology), family Carcharhinidae, which can be easily identified by the prominent black tips on its fins (especially on the first dorsal fin and ...

leopard shark The leopard shark (''Triakis semifasciata'') is a species of houndshark, in the family (biology), family Houndshark, Triakidae. It is found along the Pacific coast of North America, from the U.S. state of Oregon to Mazatlán in Mexico. Typically ...

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 . ...

s, rays, giant groupers, potato cods, snappers and trevallies. One resident, a brown whipray has lived at the aquarium since 1989. In November 2011, the shark tank and moving walkway were closed for an upgrade. ;Seal Island There are six seals at Sea Life Sunshine Coast: Long-nosed fur seals Birubi, Moana, Saturday and Sly; Subantarctic fur seal Nelson and

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 taxon, monotypic in the genus ''Neopho ...

Teiko, who are the residents of the main ''Seal Island'' exhibit.

Little penguin The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by ...

s are a recent addition to the aquarium, with a specially built exhibit constructed for a family of them. ;Other exhibits include: ''Bay of Rays'', ''Billabong'', ''Coastal Wrecks'', ''Coral Kingdom'', ''Freshwater Streams'', ''Frogs'', ''Jellyfish Kingdom'', ''Seahorse Sanctuary'' and ''Tidal Touchpools''.

Shows and talks

Sea Life Sunshine Coast presents

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

shows and wildlife information talks, and has hands-on marine displays. Shows at the park include: *Seal Shows in the Seal Stadium *Stingray Reef talks *Ocean Tunnel Tours *Touch Pool *Jellyfish Tours *Behind the Scenes Tours

Conservation

Sea Life Sunshine Coast is a rehabilitation centre for

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

s, seals, and other marine animals.

References

External links

* {{Merlin Entertainments Aquaria in Australia Oceanaria Maroochydore Tourist attractions on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland Sea Life Centres Merlin Entertainments Group Buildings and structures on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland Zoos in Queensland 1989 establishments in Australia