In Focus - Seals and Sea Lions

Status:  Least Concern

Geographic Region: World Wide 

Meaning of Name: Geographical or descriptive

Habitat:  Oceans and shore lines

Threats:  Sharks, Orcas, People

Left in Wild: Not determined

Fur Seal at Sea World's Seal Shores - Gold Coast

There are so many species of sea lions and seals that it's going to be impossible to focus on all that make these creatures so unique in one post. I do love going to zoos and watching their antics so I wanted to focus on them none the less.
  
Seals and seal lions are part of the pinnipedia family of animals. There are 33 species of pinnipeds, divided up into three groups. Fourteen are classified as sea lions and fur seals. These guys are the ones you see doing tricks at marine parks. They are the only group that can stand up on their front flippers  and also the only ones that have visible ears. The second group include18 species classified as true seals. These guys can't stand up on their flippers and are also discernible by the fact they only have small holes for ears. And the third group in the pinnipedia family only has one species and that's the walrus.   

Crowds enjoying the Californian Sea Lions at Central Park - and the animals enjoying the crowd too!

Seal Detectives is a great show at Sea World on the Gold Coast – funny thing is none of the stars are technically seals, they are all sea lions.  In fact most of the shows held in zoos and aquariums around the world only include sea lions.  This is because some species of sea lions are easily trained to balance balls on noses, clap their flippers and kiss the audience. Seals would find these activities next to impossible to achieve. 

Sea World - Gold Coast , Seal Detective Show.

Both seals and sea lions can be territorial and people have been bitten by sea lions whilst swimming or surfing in the ocean or getting too close to seals sun-baking on land.

As mentioned earlier there is a large number off species for both seals and sea lions, definitely too many to mention in this post. However the more common sea lions are named  geographicaly, for example Californian, Australian, New Zealand and South African are all popular sea lion species. Seals tend to be named for their characteristics, for example elephant, leopard and spotted all are descriptive examples of those species.

Stu’s Zoo Pick for Both Sea Lions and Seals

Most good zoos will have seal lion pools. Both Central Park Zoo and the Bronx Zoo have impressive pools with rocky centres where you can see the sea lions sun-baking and playing. 

Like most aquariums and ocean theme parks both Sea World on the Gold Coast and Ocean Park in Hong Kong have both good displays, and shows featuring Sea Lions.

Hong Kong Ocean Park, Sea Lion

Taronga Zoo is the only zoo that I have seen a true seal and that was a leopard seal swimming in its large pool. Viewing platforms from both above and below water allows for great viewing opportunities.  
 © August 2013-Stuatthezoo.blogspot.com.au

Sea World - Gold Coast

Location - Sea World Drive, Main Beach, Queensland

 

Entry Price - Adults $79.00AUD Children (3-13) $64.00 Pensioner $65.00AUD.

 

Opening Hours - 9.30am to 5.30pm. Closed Christmas day.  Anzac day (25th April)  opening hours are 1.30am to 5.30pm

 

Follow the link to 2015 update 

Sea World web page

 

Front, main entrance

Layout

This is a good size park that is a mixture of zoo, aquarium and amusement park. There are two entrances to this park. One via the main entrance at the front, adjacent to a large car park and the other at the back of the park for hotel guests staying at Sea World Resort. A monorail station services the back entrance and includes two other stations at the front and centre of the park.

At the front of the park is where you can see both Gentoo and King penguins in the Penguins Encounter enclosure.  Also close to this area is the dolphin nursery, rehabilitation pens and seal show arena. In the centre of the park is where the majority of the rides are located including a children’s ride section and roller coasters. There is also a variety of retail shops, cafes and show style amusements. Close by is where you will find Polar Bear Shores, Ray Reef (where you can feed rays for an additional charge) and a large variety of  small and large fish at Shark Bay. The Dolphin show is located at the back of the park in a purpose built arena and is close to Seal Harbour and a Little Penguins' enclosure called Penguin Point.

  The park has a large variety of cafes, restaurants and retail stores spread throughout. A small cable car connects the front of the park to the centre, close to the polar bears and shark lagoon.

One of the specialty retail stores on site

 

 Extra Activities

As this is an amusement park there are many rides throughout. There are two animal shows, Seal Detectives, and a dolphin show called Imagine that are both scheduled twice daily and are included in your entry ticket price. Talks and feeding times are also scheduled daily for all animals.

For an extra charge Sea World has a large variety of personal experiences called Animal Adventures and range from one on one time with dolphins and sea lions, underwater experiences in Shark Bay, to behind the scene tours at Polar Bear Shores. All this information is located on the web site.

Helicopter and whale watching cruises can also be arranged on site.

 

Touch pool at Shark Bay

 

   

Breeding Programmes

Sea World has a very impressive captive breeding programme with over 20 dolphins being born on site. They have also set up a foundation called The Sea World Research and Rescue Foundation. This a not for profit organisation that has supported over 120 research projects and has an extensive education campaign on the importance of conservation of the world’s oceans.  This foundation also has a specialised team on standby 24 hours a day to assist in the rescue of marine animals across the region.

 

 

Stu’s Favourite Bit

The Polar Bear enclosure (Polar Bear Shores) is an excellent way to get up close to these massive animals.  The enclosure is a great example of what the combination of technology, good animal husbandry and large enclosures can achieve. This is a state of the art enclosure and is one of the best I have seen at any zoo I have visited.  

You can see the bears at ground level, water level or overhead looking down into the enclosure. The glass wall viewing allows for very close up experiences. I had a great one-on-one experience with a polar bear trying to share its fish with me as you can see by my photo below. This is also the only place to see polar bears in Australia.  

 

Fish Anybody

 

Go HERE to see a selection of animals found at Sea World at Stu @ the zoo TV 

Stu’s review and tips  

I got married at Sea World seven years ago and this has always been my all time favourite park so it’s  going  to be a little hard to be objective, but here goes.

 

Sea World Gold Coast is not affiliated with the SeaWorld parks in the USA. I will be doing a review on SeaWorld Orlando at the end of 2013.

The animal enclosures at Sea World are stunning!  If you are looking to see a good variety of marine animals in excellent enclosures then this is a great place to visit.

 

Informative signage at every enclosure

 

The two animal shows on offer are great – Seal Detectives is suited more for children and a lot of fun. The dolphin show – Imagine is a conservation lesson and history lesson combined with an opportunity to see dolphin’s natural abilities in the wild including some additional tricks that they have learnt for health check purposes. This is all done with the backing of a great soundtrack and is definitely worth watching. The show takes place at Dolphin Cove, a large series of sandy bottom lagoons one of which is the show arena and the others can be seen directly after the show.

 

Dolphin show - Imagine

 

The food available for sale is very expensive and on the day of this review was not fresh and in one case not edible. All day refillable drink cups are available and good value at $6.00 for a small cup. If you do insist on eating at the park – the Dock Side Tavern veranda seating area is a great place to look over the park and nearby dolphin pools.

On the down side, I felt a constant bombardment of advertising material to get you to spend more money. Signs everywhere pushing the Animal Adventures you can have at an extra charge, feeding stations to feed fish for a dollar. Lolly and small toy vending machines everywhere, at just the right height to entice little children.  

 

Watch out for the kiosk where they are trying to get you to attend a time share holiday package seminar. You know the ones! Win a prize from a scratch n win ticket only to be told that you have to go to a five hour seminar to collect.

The monorail is more for entertainment value than an actual transportation system, as it was very slow and crowded. It does give you a good perspective of the park looking down including a view into some of the animal rehabilitation holding pens at the back of the park.  The cable car goes over some of the dolphin pools for a unique view.

The Monorail -See the park from a different perspective

Sea World is currently adding new attractions – more roller coasters and ride experiences. I just hope that they remember that the feeling of a special one-on-one encounter with one of your favourite animals will be around long after the thrill of a roller coaster has passed. 

 

Must See Animals 

 

Polar Bear 

Penguin

Sharks 

Dolphins 

Sea Lions 

 

 

 

 

Bronx Zoo - New York City

 

Location – 2300 Southern Blvd, Bronx, New York City

 

Entry Price – Prices do vary dependent on desired experience and what day you are visiting. 

Total Experience Tickets (recommended)

March to May, Adults $29.95US Children (3 to 12) $19.95US Senior (65+) $24.95US

June to November, Adults $33.95US Children (3 to 12) $23.95US Senior (65+) $28.95US

Opening Hours – Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm, Weekends & Holidays 10am to 5.30pm

Bronx Zoo web page 

 

 

Layout

This is a large zoo, claiming to be the largest urban zoo in the world. The zoo has four entrances with the Southern Boulevard, Asia and Bronx River entrances serviced by large car parks. The fourth being the main entrance off Fordham Road.  Your experience may differ depending on which entry you come in by.

 

 

The zoo is divided up into many sections. At the southern end is where you can see Lions, Giraffes, Zebras and African Wild Dogs whilst walking through the African Plains. This area is adjacent to the Congo Gorilla Forrest, home to Gorillas and other Primates.  You can take a monorail through Asia, ride a camel or take a stroll over the Himalayan Highlands. The Northern end is home to Bird aviaries, Tiger Mountain, Children Zoo, Bison range and Monkey House and the centre of the zoo is the location of the Butterfly Garden, Reptile Pavilion, Bears and Nocturnal House amongst many other attractions. The entire zoo is connected by a shuttle service.

 

Each section of the zoo has restrooms, cafes, retail stores and other facilities that have been themed to fit their location. All are very well signed and conveniently located.

  

One of the many peacocks roaming the zoo

 

Extra Activities

Grab the total experience tickets so that you can view the entire zoo or you will end up paying separate amounts, at more cost. Jungle world, Wild Asia Monorail, the shuttle, Butterfly Garden and the Congo Gorilla Forest are just some of the exhibits and activities that will cost extra if you don’t purchase the Total Experience tickets at the gate.

 

There are a good amount of shows and exhibits located over the entire zoo. A few are seasonal and some are only for a short time so please check the web page and plan your visit. With so much to see and do you probably won’t be able to do it all in one day, but you can definitely give it a go. There is a traditional carousel for the little ones and the price is included with your Total Experience Tickets.

 

There is a heavy emphasis on education and conservation messages at most enclosures with some great interactive displays.

 

 

Part of Tiger Mountain conservation display

 

Breeding Programs  

This zoo is one of five zoos and aquariums in New York City managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society. Visit their website via this link to see the awesome work that they are doing to protect animals in so many regions around the world. It’s nice to know your entry ticket is helping out with this work.

 

 

Stu’s Favourite Bit

I had lots to choose from but I have to mention the feeling I had whilst sitting back at a cafe at the African Somba Village, eating a hot dog and looking up at the Baboon Reserve.This is one of the largest primate enclosures in the US. It’s a replica of a hill side on the African Alps and it is spectacular. You have a vista sprawling out in front of you as you watch Baboons and Ibexes mingle whilst displaying their natural behaviors in their complex social groups. I could have easily spent a large portion of the day right there. Oh yeah - and the hot dogs were pretty good too. 

 

Go HERE to see a selection of animals found at this zoo at 

stu @ the zoo TV

 

Grab a hot dog with a great view

 

 

Gelada Baboons at Baboon Reserve

 

 

Stu’s review and tips

I’ll try and keep this review brief, but being such a large zoo it’s going to be a bit difficult . I’ll start by saying I was a tiny bit disappointed on the day of my visit. This was my first big northern hemisphere zoo, and it was cold, so I did not know what to expect. I knew the monorail; butterfly gardens and a few other exhibits wouldn’t be open but was surprised at how many animals did not venture out in cold conditions. It makes sense of course, but I was shocked to see up to six giraffes housed in a small indoor enclosure. As you can see by the photo below, you could be forgiven for thinking that I was at the natural history museum. I’m probably being a little harsh so this has prompted me to look into enclosures for hot and cold climate zoos. So I’m not going to pass judgment until I do more research and do a separate post on this subject.  

 

Not the Natural History Museum

The zoo is big and there is so much to see that it was a little overwhelming. I loved the size of some of the Savannah enclosures (even if they were empty) the indoor Madagascar and Jungle World enclosures are amazing and a must do. It appeared like entire Eco systems had been created with several species together in one enclosure.

 

Entrance to Madagascar enclosure

The way the zoo has incorporated conservation messages at some of the enclosures is very clever. No more so than at Tiger Mountain. The interactive display leaves you in no doubt in the tiger’s precarious position in the wild, and the part humans are playing in this. 

 

The Congo Gorilla Forest is another spectacular indoor outdoor enclosure but a small word of warning. We paid for a Total Experience ticket that incorporates all entry prices, so we just went straight in. However others paid for the pleasure of seeing gorillas at the enclosure entry. Once in we walked the entire enclosure (again, great conservation messages) only to find a sign at the very end announcing that due to the cold weather the gorillas will not be on display outside. Maybe I missed them inside but being a gorilla fanatic, it was disappointing.

 

The zoo shops do not stock memory cards for your camera. They do provide disposable cameras.

 

The zoo shuttle only picks up from two locations, there are multiple drop off points but you can only get on near the Asia entrance and at the centre of the zoo near the main zoo shop.

 

You easily forget that you are in one of the world’s largest cities. The paths and surroundings are heavily wooded and the themes of some of the enclosures are quite effective. Some of the signage does look a little tired though.

 

Beautifully presented enclosures

  

This visit to the Bronx Zoo was a learning experience for me. My biggest hint for this zoo is do your research if you are keen to have a particular experience. This is a world class zoo that has done an outstanding job in combining, education with a sense of discovery.

I do intend to go back during warmer months. So let’s just call this my Winter Review of the Bronx Zoo.

Must See Animals  

Penguins 
Sea Lions 
Gorilla 
Giraffe
Bison
Gelada Baboon
Elephant 
Tiger 
Lion 

© April 2013-Stuatthezoo.blogspot.com.au