MCRI Research Archive

As of October 2006, the Aquarium of the Pacific, with the cooperation of the National Marine Fisheries Service and others, has released three green sea turtles with satellite tracking tags into the waters of the Gulf of California and off Southern California. Data was received from one of the released animals for over ninety days and allowed thousands of Aquarium visitors to track its movements and learn more about the habits and behavior of sea turtles.

Dr. Lance Adams and officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service conducted a two-day workshop which consisted of classroom lectures and hands-on practicals, aimed at instructing veterinarians and stranding center managers in the proper methods of conducting necropsies and preserving tissue samples from dead sea turtles.

Phocid distemper virus (PDV) is an important disease of free-ranging marine mammals and a potential health concern for introduction into captive phocid collections. Prior to this study, no comprehensive serosurvey of the 129 captive harbor seals in North America for this virus had been performed. The Aquarium submitted serum samples from its three harbor seals to support this project.

Current treatment for this Lernea sp. parasite (arthropod) requires the use of toxic materials that are hazardous to the environment, staff, and to sensitive animals in aquariums.

In cooperation with Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, the Aquarium of the Pacific participated in a study aimed at determining the relationship between a sea turtle’s access to UV light and its ability to produce and metabolize vitamin D.

The Aquarium of the Pacific contributed tissue samples to this researcher who was conducting studies aimed at determining the phylogeny of this distinct group of psittacine birds.

The Aquarium contributed blood samples that were used in this study of fluctuations in hormone levels as a function of the reproductive cycle of sand tiger sharks.