| General Non-Fiction posted April 7, 2023 |
  |
Non-fiction review
Review of Utah Aquarium
by CrystieCookie999
Since 2014 the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium has been open in Draper, Utah, the farthest southern area of the Salt Lake Valley in northern Utah in the United States.
When you arrive at the aquarium, which is located on 12033 Lone Peak Parkway, you may be either attracted to or slightly confused by a large structure that to me resembles part of an octopus. However, the alien-like structure was once used in the music group U2's stage for their 360° World Tour. The rest of the building resembles the form of a modified shark. When it first opened, visitors could purchase their tickets in the larger building, but at the present time there is a smaller Member Services building just to the southwest, where people can purchase one-time tickets or season tickets. I purchased an adult ticket in person on April 4, 2023 for $26.70. There are other ticket prices, depending on if you are a senior, a student, in the military, or a child, who will be charged $12.95. The adult price is more expensive than a ticket to the much larger Hogle Zoo in the northeast part of the Salt Lake Valley, which costs $23.95 for an adult to purchase in person. But because of heavy snow earlier in the week, I made a better choice by going to the indoor aquarium that day.
There is a wide range of fish, reptiles, and other animals here. However, it seemed to me that as many as twenty percent of the creatures appeared to be missing that day, and they weren't merely sleeping unnoticed in a corner of their domiciles. Since Utah has a tendency to have a long winter season, I understood why the otter slide area was vacant, since nearly half of their space is outdoors, where remnants of snow from the two days of twenty-plus inches of storm precipitation had fallen. I wasn't sure why three macaws were missing in the South American section, since that enclosure was purely indoors. I missed seeing the striking clouded leopard. Also, three snakes appeared to be missing from their displays as well.
There were small piranha floating peacefully, and a sign pointed out that Hollywood often exaggerates their teeth and feeding frenzy patterns. Larger fish called pacu were nearby, which resemble piranha but are vegetarians. In fact, the foods pacus eat most resemble a fruit salad, or at least the ingredients for one.
The strangest creature I saw in the South American section was the mata mata, a sort of flat turtle. But it looked more like someone had stepped on a large slug or horny toad, even if the carapace (shell) looked very turtle-like. It has a face only a mata mata mother could love, which may be easy for them anyway, due to poor eyesight in the species.
Another species I thought was deceptively cute was the dwarf caiman. He appeared to be nearly asleep or motionless in the water, but his eyes remained wide open, scanning the surface of the water.
In my opinion, the gentoo penguin habitat more than made up for any absent creatures that day. They were fully awake, interacting with each other, and appeared sleek, pearlescent, and playful. Two penguins were staring at a wall of a small cave-like area, and I thought they must be pondering the possibility of getting a home theater system. Viewers could see the birds were bright, alert, and active. They weren't swimming when I passed by, but their pool water appeared clean.
Another section that was appealing was the clear shark tunnel. Visitors can literally walk between and under sharks swimming above their heads. These are smaller sharks, to be sure, say three feet long on the average. Detailed murals near the entrance seem to promise that there will be a wider range of sharks, but small children will still be amazed by the six or seven small sharks swimming around with ease. Once in a while you feel as if the fish are watching you, rather than the other way around.
Bioluminescent creatures were also highlighted, literally. Many displays are shown under low light or ultraviolet light, so you can see how living things and plants glow in the near-dark. The variety of butterfly fish was particularly appealing to me, since many of them featured a pleasant, bright yellow color. I thought the raccoon butterfly fish was aptly named, since it had a Zorro-like, black mask over its eyes.
The Asian portion of the aquarium features Asian arowana, which sort of look like reddish-orange, bulldog-faced fish. One once fetched a price of $300,000 in China. Another Asian fish I found intriguing was the archer fish, which looks like a perfectly normal fish until it looks for food. Then it will expel water like a water gun to knock insects off leaves or other places, so that their prey will fall into the water near the archer fish. These fish are only about six inches long, but they can shoot water up to ten feet above the water's surface.
Various kinds of sucker fish were amusing to watch, as well as razor fish, which swam vertically like pieces of kelp or leafy seaweed. I found out that three-fourths of an octopus' brain cells are located in their very flexible arms. I noticed they had a section that pointed out at least half a dozen endangered Utah fish.
There are two petting pools on the lower floor or near the first floor, and there are areas to wash hands afterward. However, a couple of the creatures had become agitated by something a group in front of me had done, perhaps as simple as stirring up the water too much, so the tour guide announced that we were all to look with our eyes for the time being. That did not hurt my feelings at all, since I didn't want to come home smelling too much like starfish or rays. As it was, the little half-feral cat still sniffed me more than once upon my arrival at home.
My niece’s husband is a biology major and would probably be able to spend an entire month at this aquarium, but I skipped the movies and was in and out in about an hour to an hour and a half.
There are a few photo shoot opportunities with two small cement whales that children can climb on. Another one was off-limits that day. They looked pretty slippery the way they were painted. If you wish to have a party or event at the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, or if you wish to film a movie or scene there, they even have places and procedures to do that as well. There is a cafe and gift shop, but prices seem kind of high for Utah families in general. T-shirts average $24, for example. But it was a pleasant experience and not too long a walk between ramps on the two floors.
Since 2014 the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium has been open in Draper, Utah, the farthest southern area of the Salt Lake Valley in northern Utah in the United States.
When you arrive at the aquarium, which is located on 12033 Lone Peak Parkway, you may be either attracted to or slightly confused by a large structure that to me resembles part of an octopus. However, the alien-like structure was once used in the music group U2's stage for their 360° World Tour. The rest of the building resembles the form of a modified shark. When it first opened, visitors could purchase their tickets in the larger building, but at the present time there is a smaller Member Services building just to the southwest, where people can purchase one-time tickets or season tickets. I purchased an adult ticket in person on April 4, 2023 for $26.70. There are other ticket prices, depending on if you are a senior, a student, in the military, or a child, who will be charged $12.95. The adult price is more expensive than a ticket to the much larger Hogle Zoo in the northeast part of the Salt Lake Valley, which costs $23.95 for an adult to purchase in person. But because of heavy snow earlier in the week, I made a better choice by going to the indoor aquarium that day.
There is a wide range of fish, reptiles, and other animals here. However, it seemed to me that as many as twenty percent of the creatures appeared to be missing that day, and they weren't merely sleeping unnoticed in a corner of their domiciles. Since Utah has a tendency to have a long winter season, I understood why the otter slide area was vacant, since nearly half of their space is outdoors, where remnants of snow from the two days of twenty-plus inches of storm precipitation had fallen. I wasn't sure why three macaws were missing in the South American section, since that enclosure was purely indoors. I missed seeing the striking clouded leopard. Also, three snakes appeared to be missing from their displays as well.
There were small piranha floating peacefully, and a sign pointed out that Hollywood often exaggerates their teeth and feeding frenzy patterns. Larger fish called pacu were nearby, which resemble piranha but are vegetarians. In fact, the foods pacus eat most resemble a fruit salad, or at least the ingredients for one.
The strangest creature I saw in the South American section was the mata mata, a sort of flat turtle. But it looked more like someone had stepped on a large slug or horny toad, even if the carapace (shell) looked very turtle-like. It has a face only a mata mata mother could love, which may be easy for them anyway, due to poor eyesight in the species.
When you arrive at the aquarium, which is located on 12033 Lone Peak Parkway, you may be either attracted to or slightly confused by a large structure that to me resembles part of an octopus. However, the alien-like structure was once used in the music group U2's stage for their 360° World Tour. The rest of the building resembles the form of a modified shark. When it first opened, visitors could purchase their tickets in the larger building, but at the present time there is a smaller Member Services building just to the southwest, where people can purchase one-time tickets or season tickets. I purchased an adult ticket in person on April 4, 2023 for $26.70. There are other ticket prices, depending on if you are a senior, a student, in the military, or a child, who will be charged $12.95. The adult price is more expensive than a ticket to the much larger Hogle Zoo in the northeast part of the Salt Lake Valley, which costs $23.95 for an adult to purchase in person. But because of heavy snow earlier in the week, I made a better choice by going to the indoor aquarium that day.
There is a wide range of fish, reptiles, and other animals here. However, it seemed to me that as many as twenty percent of the creatures appeared to be missing that day, and they weren't merely sleeping unnoticed in a corner of their domiciles. Since Utah has a tendency to have a long winter season, I understood why the otter slide area was vacant, since nearly half of their space is outdoors, where remnants of snow from the two days of twenty-plus inches of storm precipitation had fallen. I wasn't sure why three macaws were missing in the South American section, since that enclosure was purely indoors. I missed seeing the striking clouded leopard. Also, three snakes appeared to be missing from their displays as well.
There were small piranha floating peacefully, and a sign pointed out that Hollywood often exaggerates their teeth and feeding frenzy patterns. Larger fish called pacu were nearby, which resemble piranha but are vegetarians. In fact, the foods pacus eat most resemble a fruit salad, or at least the ingredients for one.
The strangest creature I saw in the South American section was the mata mata, a sort of flat turtle. But it looked more like someone had stepped on a large slug or horny toad, even if the carapace (shell) looked very turtle-like. It has a face only a mata mata mother could love, which may be easy for them anyway, due to poor eyesight in the species.
Another species I thought was deceptively cute was the dwarf caiman. He appeared to be nearly asleep or motionless in the water, but his eyes remained wide open, scanning the surface of the water.
In my opinion, the gentoo penguin habitat more than made up for any absent creatures that day. They were fully awake, interacting with each other, and appeared sleek, pearlescent, and playful. Two penguins were staring at a wall of a small cave-like area, and I thought they must be pondering the possibility of getting a home theater system. Viewers could see the birds were bright, alert, and active. They weren't swimming when I passed by, but their pool water appeared clean.
Another section that was appealing was the clear shark tunnel. Visitors can literally walk between and under sharks swimming above their heads. These are smaller sharks, to be sure, say three feet long on the average. Detailed murals near the entrance seem to promise that there will be a wider range of sharks, but small children will still be amazed by the six or seven small sharks swimming around with ease. Once in a while you feel as if the fish are watching you, rather than the other way around.
Bioluminescent creatures were also highlighted, literally. Many displays are shown under low light or ultraviolet light, so you can see how living things and plants glow in the near-dark. The variety of butterfly fish was particularly appealing to me, since many of them featured a pleasant, bright yellow color. I thought the raccoon butterfly fish was aptly named, since it had a Zorro-like, black mask over its eyes.
The Asian portion of the aquarium features Asian arowana, which sort of look like reddish-orange, bulldog-faced fish. One once fetched a price of $300,000 in China. Another Asian fish I found intriguing was the archer fish, which looks like a perfectly normal fish until it looks for food. Then it will expel water like a water gun to knock insects off leaves or other places, so that their prey will fall into the water near the archer fish. These fish are only about six inches long, but they can shoot water up to ten feet above the water's surface.
Various kinds of sucker fish were amusing to watch, as well as razor fish, which swam vertically like pieces of kelp or leafy seaweed. I found out that three-fourths of an octopus' brain cells are located in their very flexible arms. I noticed they had a section that pointed out at least half a dozen endangered Utah fish.
There are two petting pools on the lower floor or near the first floor, and there are areas to wash hands afterward. However, a couple of the creatures had become agitated by something a group in front of me had done, perhaps as simple as stirring up the water too much, so the tour guide announced that we were all to look with our eyes for the time being. That did not hurt my feelings at all, since I didn't want to come home smelling too much like starfish or rays. As it was, the little half-feral cat still sniffed me more than once upon my arrival at home.
In my opinion, the gentoo penguin habitat more than made up for any absent creatures that day. They were fully awake, interacting with each other, and appeared sleek, pearlescent, and playful. Two penguins were staring at a wall of a small cave-like area, and I thought they must be pondering the possibility of getting a home theater system. Viewers could see the birds were bright, alert, and active. They weren't swimming when I passed by, but their pool water appeared clean.
Another section that was appealing was the clear shark tunnel. Visitors can literally walk between and under sharks swimming above their heads. These are smaller sharks, to be sure, say three feet long on the average. Detailed murals near the entrance seem to promise that there will be a wider range of sharks, but small children will still be amazed by the six or seven small sharks swimming around with ease. Once in a while you feel as if the fish are watching you, rather than the other way around.
Bioluminescent creatures were also highlighted, literally. Many displays are shown under low light or ultraviolet light, so you can see how living things and plants glow in the near-dark. The variety of butterfly fish was particularly appealing to me, since many of them featured a pleasant, bright yellow color. I thought the raccoon butterfly fish was aptly named, since it had a Zorro-like, black mask over its eyes.
The Asian portion of the aquarium features Asian arowana, which sort of look like reddish-orange, bulldog-faced fish. One once fetched a price of $300,000 in China. Another Asian fish I found intriguing was the archer fish, which looks like a perfectly normal fish until it looks for food. Then it will expel water like a water gun to knock insects off leaves or other places, so that their prey will fall into the water near the archer fish. These fish are only about six inches long, but they can shoot water up to ten feet above the water's surface.
Various kinds of sucker fish were amusing to watch, as well as razor fish, which swam vertically like pieces of kelp or leafy seaweed. I found out that three-fourths of an octopus' brain cells are located in their very flexible arms. I noticed they had a section that pointed out at least half a dozen endangered Utah fish.
There are two petting pools on the lower floor or near the first floor, and there are areas to wash hands afterward. However, a couple of the creatures had become agitated by something a group in front of me had done, perhaps as simple as stirring up the water too much, so the tour guide announced that we were all to look with our eyes for the time being. That did not hurt my feelings at all, since I didn't want to come home smelling too much like starfish or rays. As it was, the little half-feral cat still sniffed me more than once upon my arrival at home.
My niece’s husband is a biology major and would probably be able to spend an entire month at this aquarium, but I skipped the movies and was in and out in about an hour to an hour and a half.
There are a few photo shoot opportunities with two small cement whales that children can climb on. Another one was off-limits that day. They looked pretty slippery the way they were painted. If you wish to have a party or event at the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, or if you wish to film a movie or scene there, they even have places and procedures to do that as well. There is a cafe and gift shop, but prices seem kind of high for Utah families in general. T-shirts average $24, for example. But it was a pleasant experience and not too long a walk between ramps on the two floors.
There are a few photo shoot opportunities with two small cement whales that children can climb on. Another one was off-limits that day. They looked pretty slippery the way they were painted. If you wish to have a party or event at the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, or if you wish to film a movie or scene there, they even have places and procedures to do that as well. There is a cafe and gift shop, but prices seem kind of high for Utah families in general. T-shirts average $24, for example. But it was a pleasant experience and not too long a walk between ramps on the two floors.
 Recognized |
Photo from royalty-free search on Internet, of raccoon butterfly fish.
References: https://www.utah.com/listing/loveland-living-planet-aquarium/2633/
http://thelivingplanet.com/expeditionasia/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archerfish
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. References: https://www.utah.com/listing/loveland-living-planet-aquarium/2633/
http://thelivingplanet.com/expeditionasia/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archerfish
You need to login or register to write reviews. It's quick! We only ask four questions to new members.
© Copyright 2024. CrystieCookie999 All rights reserved.
CrystieCookie999 has granted FanStory.com, its affiliates and its syndicates non-exclusive rights to display this work.
