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United effort to restore fish habitat could bring in new funding
Aquarium immerses visitors in watery habitats, including a few close to home
Order for improved habitats goes beyond better water quality
Sharks circle through the tank with beady, watchful eyes.
Children squeal as suction cups on an octopus pulse along the display glass, millimeters from the human faces pressed against it. Dolphins leap, and fish with shocking colors glide through the water.
It's the National Aquarium at Baltimore, where one can visit the ocean depths, Australian outback, a tropical rainforest, and-oh yes, the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
The aquarium is a unique feature of the Baltimore skyline, with a series of rooftop peaks along the Inner Harbor waterfront. It's also a major draw for tourists, with more than 16,000 specimens and 660 species in its collection.
It's easy to see how a rockfish might get lost in the crowd. But the National Aquarium strives to highlight the Bay's watery denizens because 80 percent of its visitors live in the Bay watershed. In all, the aquarium welcomes about 1.6 million visitors every year.
It's a huge educational opportunity, according to conservation manager Laura Bankey.
"The aquarium is extremely visible, and Maryland's number one tourist attraction," Bankey said. "We take that responsibility very seriously."
The National Aquarium, a member of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, promotes Bay stewardship through its exhibits and through a conservation program that has channeled more than 47,000 hours of volunteer energy into wetland restoration projects in places like Poplar Island and Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge.
Aquarium educators present Bay-related programs in area schools and have helped students in Baltimore, Howard County, Washington D.C., and on the Eastern Shore set up schoolground nurseries for marsh grass.
"Our aim is to get local folks involved in the stewardship of their own backyard," Bankey said.
Visitors to the aquarium can start by looking under their feet. The outdoor plaza, where guests gather for tickets, has a surprise etched in the curving pavers. Officially known as the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Waterfront Park, the plaza is themed to explore Maryland's ecosystems and the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
The plaza surface features a large ground map of the Bay watershed, showing the states within its boundaries, along with key place names and rivers, as well as the contours of the coastal, piedmont, and Appalachian regions. Every half inch of pavers equals one mile on the landscape. Children and adults can stand on the spot near their hometowns and ponder their connection to the Bay.
Around them is a showcase of Maryland's native plants. No prim, clipped shrubbery here. Instead, groups of native trees, shrubs and wildflowers represent different regions of the state.
Near the street side of the plaza, stalks of cordgrass and cattails join the loblolly pines and winterberry shrubs that can be found on the coastal plain as it reaches inward from the ocean. Moving "inland," toward the aquarium doors, the piedmont section includes young swamp tupelo trees, buttonbush, jack-in-the-pulpit, and a selection of bog plants.
Large boulders anchor the Appalachian plantings, evoking forests of oak, hemlock, spicebush and mountain laurel. The scene transitions to the inside of the aquarium, where fish from a typical Allegheny stream greet visitors at the base of a waterfall.
Deeper inside, the aquatic creatures of Maryland take center stage. A second floor exhibit traces the outdoor journey in reverse-this time starting at the mountains and traveling to the sea.
"Since 90 percent of Maryland is in the Bay watershed, these exhibits really highlight the diversity of the different regions," Bankey said. "They show the connection, too. People don't always connect freshwater with the Bay."
The mountain stream is an intimate nook, where bullfrogs lounge above carp and swarming minnows.
In contrast, the tidal marsh seems bright and exposed. Perch and killifish slip through the water, edged by live plants and the suggestion of a pier. Diamondback terrapins, with their distinctive stripped heads, paddle past a submerged crab pot to inspect visitors.
A commanding group of rockfish swim in the neighboring tank. In the wild, 90 percent of their kin caught between North Carolina and Maine use the Bay as a nursery ground.
Bankey said some people are drawn to the tanks because they recognize what they see. Others because they don't.
"The Maryland exhibit is especially popular with school kids," Bankey said, "because they don't always see these things, even though they live here."
It helps that the water is clear, too-a glimpse of life underwater without the thick stew of sediment that often clouds the real-life view.
Throughout the aquarium, visitors also encounter species that exist in the Bay, but don't come to mind as quickly as blue crabs, oysters and rockfish.
There's the feather blenny, for example, which lays its eggs in empty oyster shells, and the paper-thin hogchoker sole that flattens itself along Bay and river bottoms. The lined sea horse can be found in the Bay's southern reaches.
On the main floor, enormous skates and rays make their breathtaking "flight" through the water. Among them are two species that travel through the Bay: the southern stingray that ripples across the bottom and the cownose ray that wings through open water.
It's hard to imagine anyone leaving the aquarium without a renewed sense of awe at underwater life. But celebrating these marvels is only half of the story. The aquarium also conveys a message of concern.
Exhibit signs point out that Bay waters are degraded, and fish larvae in western Maryland streams are threatened by acid rain. Loss of habitat and other problems are making life difficult for many of the creatures that aquarium visitors admire.
"The aquarium isn't just about education. We're a conservation organization too," Bankey said.
The Aquarium Conservation Team, or ACT, has taken more than 5,000 volunteers into the field to help restore wetland habitat. They have been active partners in the restoration of marshland at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge and Barren and Poplar islands.
"Bay islands are eroding for various reasons, like ship traffic, wave action and even global warming and sea level rise," Bankey said. "But they are extremely important habitat for crustaceans, reptiles and nesting shore birds, especially because most islands are now uninhabited. There's no one to bother them."
ACT volunteers help to plant marshland and revisit the sites to monitor the condition of the plants and record how fish and birds have responded to them. Senior staff members supervise the process.
Volunteers have also been involved with habitat projects at Fort McHenry and in tidewater Virginia, and they have begun work with Atlantic white cedars on the Eastern Shore and freshwater stream restoration near Binghamton, NY. Some volunteer where they live. Others travel to project sites.
Of course, the aquarium will always have far more visitors than volunteers. Bankey is fine with that.
She is thrilled when some visitors are inspired to pull on boots and plant marsh grass in an ailing wetland. But she is equally pleased that the aquarium leads many people to consider how their daily actions or inactions impact the Bay, and to become more active stewards of their own local rivers.
National Aquarium at Baltimore
The National Aquarium at Baltimore is located at 501 East Pratt Street at the Inner Harbor.
Information: Visit www.aqua.org for useful tips on visiting the National Aquarium. Purchase advance tickets, print a parking coupon, learn how to avoid the crowds and more. It also offers a preview of some of the creatures encountered on a visit. To contact the aquarium, call 410-576-3800 or 410-727-3022 (TTY/TDD).
Hours for March 2008: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Hours vary by month and season and may change without notice; check for current information before going.
Tickets: Several ticket combinations are available for the exhibits, dolphin show and 4D Immersion Theater. Prices begin at $14.95 for ages 3-11; $25.95 for ages 12-59; and $24.95 for ages 60 and older. To ensure a desired entry time, it's best to buy advance tickets from the aquarium website or from Ticketmaster.
Membership: Aquarium members enjoy unlimited admission for one year, express entry and discounts at aquarium shops and restaurants. Memberships cost $74/individual, $104/couple and $124/family. Substantial discounts are available if one purchases the membership before a visit, instead of at the door. Call 410-659-4230 for memberships and allow 2 weeks for processing.
