New Sea Cave Adventure Exhibit Coming to Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

Posted By : The Animal Facts Editorial Team

Date: February 25, 2021 10:30 pm

A rendering of the new Sea Cave Adventure habitat at SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

Photo Credit: SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium in Auckland, New Zealand have announced a new exhibit which is scheduled to open during December 2021. Titled Sea Cave Adventure the habitat will introduce guests to the wildlife of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park.

This world-class interactive experience will educate guests and help them to fall in love with Hauraki Gulf Marine Park and it’s inhabitants. The marine park was the first and remains the largest marine park in New Zealand.

A rendering of the new Sea Cave Adventure habitat at SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

Photo Credit: SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium will invest $1.1 million in building the habitat. It will guide visitors through the story of the the park which was established on February 27th 2020. It will serve as a portal to learn about the Gulf’s marine life, the threats they face and how to protect them.

In the new habitat guests will move through four themed portals where guests will encounter native octopus, eel, starfish, crayfish, pufferfish and crab species. A reinvigorated rockpool experience will round out the display. This will feature video and audio content alongside digital displays.

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“Our aim is to advocate for the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park by creating an engaging and educational experience that not only enlightens guests but inspires them to continue discovering the Gulf after they leave the Aquarium. We want to help raise the profile of the Gulf and encourage our guests – both local and visiting – to explore this amazing resource and protect it for future generations,” said Dan Henderson, General Manager of SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s.

“We are grateful for the Department of Conservation’s ongoing support, which will help us ensure Sea Cave Adventure is a world-class experience full of hidden discoveries, unexpected surprises and digital interactives,” continued Dan.

Native eels and octopus will be among the featured species in the new exhibit

Photo Credit: SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

According to Julie Kidd, Strategic Partnerships Advisor at the Department of Conservation; “Our hugely successful partnership with SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s helps us reach hundreds of thousands of people to share the wonder and uniqueness of New Zealand’s only national park of the sea, right here on our doorstep. The Aquarium team’s commitment and passion to our unique marine space is superb.”

The Sea Cave Adventure zone will help the Aquarium continue the legacy of its founder, globally-renowned adventurer Kelly Tarlton, whose passion for the underwater world inspired him to create the world’s first ocean tunnel to share the wonders of the ocean and its inhabitants from a whole new perspective.

A rendering of the new Sea Cave Adventure habitat at SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

Photo Credit: SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium

Learn more about the SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium on their website – SEA LIFE Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium