Conservation | Volunteering | Turtles
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Improbable Residents: The Sea Turtles of the San Gabriel River | Hugh 
It is one of the best kept secrets of Mother Nature. When you think of green sea turtles, visions of tropical islands comes to mind. To folks in the Los Angeles/ Orange County area of California, these warm water wanderers are thought to be in far off, exotic locales. And yet in an urban river near the Long Beach-Orange County border an improbable group of sea turtles inconspicuously resides.
Conservation | Whale Watching | Mammals
Thursday, July 31, 2008
BLUE WHALE FLUKE PRINTS AND POOP PRINTS | Hugh
An adult blue whale can eat over 4 tons of krill per day and just like you and I after gorging ourselves on our favorite foods, a lot of what enters our body via the mouth, usually exits the body a bit further down.
10 Year Anniversary Stories
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Remembering Grand Opening Day | Hugh
10 Year Anniversary Special Edition Blog
The first animal that I worked with on the Grand Opening day was Ellie the harbor seal. Her old feeding station was right next to the Plexiglas window in front of the seating area. Ellie was a very intelligent and patient seal with her rookie feeder that day. Ten years later, she’s still is with her now veteran volunteer.
10 Year Anniversary Stories | Volunteering | Mammals
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
TOPAZ: THE CAT THAT THE AQUARIUM WAS BUILT AROUND | Hugh
Which animal at the Aquarium of the Pacific has been there the longest? Is it one of the sea otters? Perhaps it’s one of the seals? Maybe even one of the sharks? Actually the animal with the longest tenure at the Aquarium is Topaz the cat. Now… I know what you’re thinking: What is a cat doing at an aquarium? Well, truth be told, Topaz was here at the site way before the first fish ever swam here. This is his story.
10 Year Anniversary Stories
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
BEFORE THE AQUARIUM—-A Quick Long Beach History Lesson | Hugh
The land that the Aquarium of the Pacific sits on was once offshore of an old rollercoaster called the Cyclone Racers. With photographs, this week’s blog explores a bit of the history of the Rainbow Harbor area.
Conservation | 10 Year Anniversary Stories | Volunteering | Amphibians | Birds | Fish | Mammals | Sharks | Turtles
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
HUGH’S TOP TEN AQUARIUM MEMORIES AND EXPERIENCES | Hugh
This June 20th is the tenth anniversary of the Grand Opening of the Aquarium of the Pacific back in 1998. However, this June 6th is my ten year anniversary of the day that I started volunteering at the Aquarium. To commemorate my anniversary day, this week’s blog is about my top ten Aquarium memories and experiences.
Conservation | Volunteering | Birds
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Make Way For Ducklings | Hugh
The staff at the Aquarium not only talks the talk when it comes to protecting Nature—-they also walk the walk and for a family of ducks, they were their Guardian Angels. This is the story of how three husbandry staffers helped a female Mallard and her eight ducklings make it through the urban jungle of Long Beach and safely to the water in the Aquarium of the Pacific’s version of MAKE WAY FOR DUCKLINGS.
Volunteering | Mammals
Thursday, May 08, 2008
The Seal that Rescued a Rescuer | Hugh
I’ve been asked by visitors to the Aquarium what my favorite pinniped is. Most of them expect my answer to be either the California sea lion (like Miller) or the Harbor seal (like Ellie) because of how much I work and play with these critters. They are surprised when I tell them that the Elephant seal is actually my favorite. This is the story of how a young elephant seal once saved this volunteer from a mauling by a pack of wild animals.
Volunteering | Fish
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
SKIPPY THE MUDSKIPPER | Hugh
In an odd paradox; when one visits the home of Skippy the Mudskipper one has to look underwater for snakes and above water for fish. Skippy and his mudskipper buddies are quite entertaining to watch so this week’s blog also includes a video of Skippy who acts more like a dog than a fish.
Volunteering | Mammals
Thursday, April 10, 2008
How to Train a Sea Lion (and a Rabbit) | Hugh
Just because you don’t have a handy sea lion around doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun training animals. Any critter can be trained as long as you know what makes it happy!
