It’s hot in late summer, and I am glad to get indoors and enjoy the cool surroundings of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, only 15 miles south of Wilmington. I am with Ainsley, my nine-year-old granddaughter, and we are visiting the Wilmington area for a few days.
The North Carolina Aquarium is a system of three public aquariums in Kure Beach, Roanoke Island, and Pine Knoll Shores. This aquarium focuses on the waters of the Cape Fear region.
After taking care of admission, we start our exploration.
We first encounter a family of Asian small-clawed otters having the time of their lives, slipping and sliding in their habitat. Next, we spy Luna, a rare albino alligator. The Coquina Outcrop Touch Pool allowed us to touch anemones, pencil urchins, and hermit crabs.
The Coastal Waters Gallery features fish typical of a wave-washed rock jetty, including seahorses and a loggerhead sea turtle.
The Open Oceans Gallery included Sharkstooth Ledge, which featured fish offshore North Carolina, such as pufferfish, hogfish, and filefish. The gallery also displayed octopus, jellyfish, and corals native to the state’s waters.
At the aquarium’s heart was a tank with 235,000 gallons of saltwater. The 24-foot-deep replica of an offshore reef offers two-story, multi-level views of large sharks, stingrays, groupers, and moray eels, where we stopped to listen to an informative talk on the fish in the tank and environmental tips.
The Exotic Aquatics Display featured animals native to the Indo-Pacific and other ocean regions, including spiny lobsters and red lionfish.
Australian spotted jellyfish whirled around their environment, and a 550-gallon Pacific Reef Display featured living corals, giant clams, anemones, cardinalfish, clownfish, wrasses, surgeonfish, and other fish species.
Outside, we met Maverick, the eagle found in Wisconsin with a broken wing and unable to fly. He has been with the aquarium since 2014.
The Aquariums Division of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources operates all three aquariums and Jennette’s Pier. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums accredits all three aquariums.
You must make reservations online to visit. For more information, click here.
