Touch Tanks
We have three touch tanks featuring over 30 species common to the rocky shores. Touch all you like but please be gentle with our sea stars, crabs, sea urchins, snails, kelp and sea cucumbers.
Shark & Ray Tank
Get a close up look at thornback rays, horn sharks and swell sharks. No touching please as these animals get scared easily. The best time for viewing these critters is during feeding time, every Sunday at 3:30pm during our popular Shark Sundays.
Pier Tank
Our largest exhibit, the 2,200-gallon Pier Tank, gives you a glimpse of the animals that live right under the Santa Monica Pier. Check out the enormous ochre sea stars, California sheephead, schools of sargo, croakers and surfperch and the California halibut to name a few.
Kelp Forest Tank
This tank houses a large and diverse community of animals that can be found along the edges of the kelp forest. See leopard sharks, schools of blacksmith, the giant kelpfish and the sarcastic fringehead hanging out and swimming through the beautiful kelp species of California.
Octopus Tank & Phylum Discovery Tank
This exhibit, located in the Kid’s Corner, highlights another beautiful member of the shores of California, the two-spotted octopus. Although sometimes hard to find due to their great camouflage skills, our resident octopus can usually be found surrounded by empty crab skeletons…evidence of last night’s tasty dinner!
The Phylum Discovery Tank exhibits some of the incredible phyla that comprise our marine communities. On display are red rock shrimp (Arthropoda), club-tipped anemones (Cnidaria), rock scallops (Mollusca), feather duster worms (Annelida) and a juvenile moray eel (Chordata).
Rocky Reef Tank
Get eye to eye with one of the ocean’s most misunderstood and mysterious fish, the moray eel. This subtidal rocky reef is home to the small and colorful blue-banded goby, the blackeye goby, island and spotted kelpfish and large flower-like anemones.
Sandy Bottom Tank
At first glance, this tank looks very plain. But look closely! The sandy floor is moving and shifting as dozens of olive snails, sand dollars, elbow and globe crabs, moon snails and armored sand stars battle for position, food and a place to rest. See our baby black and shiner surfperch, born at the Aquarium, dance in and out of the elegant surf grass. Don’t forget to check out the sea pansy too.
Crustacean Tank
At 10 pounds, our California spiny lobster is king of the tank. Along with adult walleye, black and shiner surfperch, this habitat is cozy. Even the ominous looking sheep crabs that patrol the sandy floor around the reef enjoy this tank.
About Our Exhibits
This page contains information about the aquarium's current exhibits and displays.
This page last updated on Monday, September 12, 2005
