Splashing through the snow… to our Holiday Open House!

Give the gift of experience and lasting impression. Grab the gang and head down to the National Marine Life Center for some fun at the Holiday Splash Open House this Saturday, December 8 from 11AM to 3PM. Explore the Discovery Center and tour the marine animal hospital. Enjoy arts and crafts and games for all. Create a marine animal ornament. Admission is just $5 per person; members are free. The more, the merrier! We look forward to seeing you.

In the meantime, check out these cool ocean animals. They’re always dressed up for the holidays!

Angelfish – There are two types of angelfish. Marine angelfish are found in salty waters across the world while freshwater angelfish are found prominently in the freshwater rivers of South America. Combined, there are about 100 species of angelfish. They are thin, with round bodies and elongated triangular dorsal and anal fins. Angelfish have vertical colored stripes to provide camouflage. Unlike the freshwater angelfish, marine angelfish lay their eggs straight into the water. The angelfish eggs float in the sea until they hatch.

Sea Stars – There are more than 2,000 species of sea stars among both temperate and tropical waters. Most species have five arms but some may have 10, 20, or even 40 arms.  Sea stars are most famous for their ability to regenerate or regrow limbs.  Sea stars have no blood. Their “blood” is actually filtered sea water.

Christmas Tree Worm – The Christmas tree worm is named after its cone-shaped spirals of plumes. They come in many colors including orange, yellow, blue, and white. The colorful plumes, or tentacles, are used for feeding on food particles and plankton in the water and for respiration. They can be found worldwide in tropical waters. Christmas tree worms are very sensitive to disturbances and will rapidly collapse into their burrows at the slightest threat.

Sea Angel – Sea angels are swimming sea slugs that have developed wing-like flapping appendages. They are mostly transparent and very small. The largest of the species only grows to be about 5 cm. Some species feed only on sea butterflies.  Sea angels are born with shells but shed them as they grow to be adults.

Christmas Wrasse – The Christmas Wrasse, also known as the Ornate wrasses, is rumored to be named after its red and green colors. They are found in the waters of Hawaii and Polynesia. Christmas wrasse uses the sand bed as a resting place and to escape predators. Its main diet consists of small crustaceans and invertebrates.

Resources:
http://EzineArticles.com/2195225
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/starfish/
http://www.marinebio.org/species.asp?id=543
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_angel
http://animal.discovery.com/guides/fish/marine/wrasseintro.html