Bristol’s bloodthirsty history of piracy… Bristol and the South West was home to some of the most famous and ruthless pirates in the world. They terrorised our busy ports, ruled the high seas, and struck fear into the hearts of sailors and battle-hardened Royal Navy captain alike.
Our annual stock-take is taking place this weekend (Saturday January 19 to Sunday January 20 2019) with our own version of a ‘fishy census!’ Throughout the weekend, we’re inviting visitors to help spot and record the number of certain species including sharks, rays and seahorses.
A new female has joined Bristol Aquarium’s male Atlantic Wolffish (Anarhichas lupus) which is arguably one of the ugliest fish homed at the city centre attraction. The wolffish live deep in the Atlantic ocean, distinguished by their unique set of protruding teeth, which they use to crush the shells of their prey.
Bristol Aquarium is the UK’s only Aquarium with a huge botanical house, taking visitors on a journey around the World, and in some cases, even through time.
If you come in to the Aquarium’s Botanical House, you might be surprised to find lots of plants flowering, despite the chilly temperatures just outside!
Two juvenile undulate rays (Raja undulata) have taken residence in Bristol Aquarium’s nursery tank to raise awareness of endangered species to visitors. The undulate rays have been given ‘endangered’ status by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) meaning they are at very high risk of extinction in the wild.
Welcome to Bristol’s very own interview with our creatures. Here, we interview our creatures and fish out the dirt and gossip from beneath the waves.
Nothing causes big mysterious waves quite like our oceans. Covering over 70% of the world’s surface and providing depths upon depths of exploration for divers, let’s find out just how deep our oceans really are.
At Bristol Aquarium, tropical pufferfish are being trained to come to the surface of the water to be fed using a hula hoop. Enrichment training is a key to the welfare of captive animals and pufferfish are very intelligent, hence why they are being trained at Bristol Aquarium.
Do we really know what’s beneath the surface of the deep blue sea? It’s not all cute, forgetful Dorys and funny clownfish like Marlin – further under the waves live some of the creepiest creatures in the world. Let’s meet them, shall we?