Surviving Through Adaptation

Animals in This Exhibit

• Atlantic Creole Fish

  This fish can be any color from gray to a very bright red. It inhabits coral reefs and hard bottoms, preferring the shallow water but is found as deep as 165 feet.

  

• Banggai Cardinalfish

  This small, disc-shaped fish is easily recognized by its tasseled first dorsal fin; long, tapering second dorsal fin; and deeply forked tail, or caudal fin.

  

• Black Grouper

  Black grouper are typically dark in color and have several sets of teeth. All black grouper are born female.

  

• Chambered Nautilus

  The chambered nautilus is a mollusk, related to the octopus, squid, clam and snail.

  

• Electric Eel

  Electrophorus electricus—everything about this eel’s scientific name says high voltage! Of the fishes able to generate an electrical discharge, electric eels are by far the champions, producing up to 600 volts!

  

• Fairy Basslets

  Fairy Basslets are small, vibrantly colored fish and are coral reef inhabitants.

  

• Giant Pacific Octopus

  These masters of camouflage can quickly change the color and texture of their skin to match the background.

  

• Graysby

  Graysbys are solitary and secretive, often hiding during the day.

  

• Longhorn Cowfish

  This charismatic fish is a member of the boxfish family, and is easily recognizable by its long horns that protrude from the front of its head.

  

• Longnose Gar

  The longnose gar is an elongated fish with a long, thin snout full of needle-like teeth perfectly suited for catching prey. Longnose gar are distinguished from other gar species by the long snout, with a length at least 10 times the width.

  

• Longsnout Seahorse

  The longsnout seahorse has a yellow body, with flecks of brown and black.

  

• Peacock Mantis Shrimp

  This ferocious crustacean has club-like appendages that fold under its body, similar to a praying mantis.

  

• Spotfin Butterflyfish

  The black bar across this fish’s eye confuses predators.