 Welcome
to Oceans
The Oceans exhibit presented by Citizens Energy Group allows guests to
get up close with a diverse collection of animals of unusual shapes and
brilliant colors. The Firestone Gallery features the nation’s largest shark
touch pool where guests can touch our smooth dogfish sharks. In addition to
the many species of water-breathing aquatic animals, our Oceans collection
also includes air-breathing marine mammals. Visitors can go 17 feet
underwater to meet one of the Zoo’s marine mammal species in their own
environment! The Dolphin Pavilion includes the Marsh Dolphin Theater, which
features multiple daily shows, as well as the nation’s first underwater
dolphin viewing dome! These are the Oceans animals guests can meet at the
Indianapolis Zoo:
  Dolphin
Theater presented by:
Marsh
Average size: 10 to 14 feet in length, up to 1,100 pounds
Average life
span: 45 to 50 years
Key
physical characteristics: Long, sleek, blue-gray bodies with
a dorsal fin atop their back, pectoral fins at their sides and a
long tail fluke; a beak, called a rostrum, protruding from the
face with blowhole at the top of the head.
Native
region/habitat range: Tropical oceans and warm waters across the world.
Eating
habits: Cooperate as a pod when hunting, encircling schools of fish or
trapping them in shallow water; feeds on fish, shrimp and squid.
Conservation status:
Stable
Fun
facts: Groups of dolphins are called pods, and communicate with squeaks,
whistles and echolocation. Dolphins can make nearly 1000 clicking noises per
second. A dolphin produces all of its sounds from its blowhole, not its
mouth. Because they are air breathers living in the water, sleeping can pose
a challenge. So a dolphin will sleep with only half its brain at a time
while the other half maintains basic functions, like swimming.
Photo by Abbie Mingus
 Average size:
5.5 to 7.25 feet in length, 610 to 860 pounds
Average life span:
30 years
Key
physical characteristics: Pinniped (fin-footed mammal), ear flaps, sleek
bodies
Native
region/habitat range: Coastline of the Pacific Ocean
Eating
habits: Dives and uses vibrissae to locate food, swallows whole or eats
in chunks; feeds on squid, fish, sometimes clams
Conservation status:
Least concern
Fun
facts: Sea lions can hunt continuously for up to 30 hours and can remain
underwater for nearly 10 minutes during each dive. They are faster than
other seals or sea lions and are able to swim nearly 25 miles an hour.
Although their bodies may appear cumbersome, they are actually quite agile
and adept at climbing rocks, which line the shores where they live. Huge
colonies are known as rookeries.
Photo by Tom Schoon
 Average size:
0.25 to 12
inches
Average life span:
Polyp,
two years to hundreds of years; colony, five years to
several centuries
Key physical characteristics:
Hard protective limestone skeleton at base
called a calicle, which forms coral reef structures; tiny soft bodied
organisms
Native region/habitat range:
Tropical waters throughout the world; near the
surface for the sun’s rays
Eating habits:
Various coral will extend tentacles or secret films to
collect organic particles, often nocturnal feeders; most nutrients come from
the algae’s photosynthesis, but they also eat zooplankton and even small
fish
Conservation status:
Endangered
Fun facts:
Corals cover less than one percent of the ocean floor, but
support about 25 percent of all marine creatures. Corals get their vibrant
colors from the hosted algae.
Photo by Indianapolis Zoo
 Average size:
Up to 48
inches wide
Average life span: 13 to 18 years
Key physical characteristics:
Forehead resembles a cow’s nose with an
indented groove around the front of its head; dorsal (backside) ranges from
brown to olive and the ventral (underside) is white in color; pectoral fins
or wings are long and pointed; whip-like tail with two barbs at the end
Native region/habitat range:
Coastlines of the Atlantic Ocean from New
England to the South Caribbean
Eating habits: Kick up underwater sand storms, uses modified fins to produce
suction and is able to draw in food; eats oysters, clams, snails and crabs
Conservation status: near threatened
Fun facts: When searching for food, cownose rays kick up underwater sand
storms. They travel in large groups, called schools, that can include as
many as 10,000 rays.
Photo by Gabi Moore
 Average size:30 inches, 12 pounds
Average life span: 15 to 20 years
Key physical characteristics:
Red-orange beaks, white-feather
caps, peach-colored feet
Native region/habitat range:
Antarctic Peninsula
Eating habits: Feeds at sea, swallows whole while swimming; eats
primarily fish
Conservation status: Near threatened
Fun facts: The gentoo
penguins' paddle-shaped flippers propel them through the water at speeds of up to 22 miles an
hour — faster than any other diving bird. An adult gentoo may make 450 or
more dives a day foraging for food.
Photo by
© Joel Sartore |
www.joelsartore.com
 Average
size: 6 to 8 feet in length, up to 64 pounds
Average life span:
20 to 25 years
Key physical
characteristics: Green color; continuous fins,
giving the appearance of one single fin
Native region/habitat
range: They hide in cracks and crevices along
shorelines and reefs from the western Atlantic to the northern
area of the Gulf of Mexico.
Eating habits: Nocturnal hunter, uses its sense of smell to
hunt; eats fish, crabs, shrimp, small squid
Conservation status:
Least concern
Fun facts:
The green moray is actually brown — the mucus that covers its
body is yellow tinted and gives the fish its bright color.
Photo by Doug McShooler
 Average size: 6.5 feet in length, 550 to 770 pounds
Average life span: Females 35 years, males 25 years
Key
physical characteristics: Easily recognizable coats — from brown, grey
and silver, often with spots or blotches. Males, known as bulls, have
continuous dark background, while females have a lighter base coat.
Native
region/habitat range: temperate and sub arctic waters in the north
Atlantic regions
Eating
habits: Feeds on fish, mollusks
Conservation status:
Least concern
Fun
facts: Known as the horse-head seal. Its scientific name comes from the
Greek, meaning “hooked-nose-sea-pig.” Although typically diving 230 feet to
feed they are able to dive nearly 1,000 feet.
Photo by Kerrie Best
 Average size:
5 to 6 feet, nearly 300 pounds
Average life span:
25 to 30 years
Key
physical characteristics: No external ear flap, spotted coats in a
variety of shades — from white or silver-grey to dark brown or black.
Native
region/habitat range: Regions north of the equator in both the Pacific
and Atlantic Oceans.
Eating
habits: Swallow food whole, or use back molars to crush shells; feeds on
fish, mollusks, squid, crustaceans
Conservation status:
Least concern
Fun
facts: The harbor seal is also known as the common seal. Harbor seals
can sleep in the water by submerging their bodies and sticking their nose in
the air. This is known as “bottling.”
Photo by Kelly Gara
 Average size:
3 feet
tall, 40 pounds
Average life span:
15 to 20 years
Key physical characteristics:
Orange oval along side of face and a
neon yellow patch at the base of neck
Native region/habitat range:
Lives in the waters and on the shores
of islands above the Antarctic.
Eating habits:
Feeds at sea, swallows whole while swimming; preys
on small fish, squid
Conservation status:
Least concern
Fun facts:
This is the
second largest species of penguin, next to the emperor, and it is the
largest penguin on exhibit at the Indianapolis Zoo.
Photo by
© Joel Sartore |www.joelsartore.com
 Average size:
Up to 15 inches in diameter
Average life span:
Up to 25 years
Key physical
characteristics: Translucent, moonlike, circular
bells; fringe at the end of bell rather than tentacles
Native region/habitat
range: Temperate and tropical open waters
worldwide; common along California coast, east coast, Europe,
Japan and the Gulf of Mexico
Eating habits:
Uses mild stinging cells to catch their prey; eats small
plankton, small mollusks and crustaceans, small jellyfish and
fish eggs.
Conservation status:
least concern
Fun facts: Moon jellies change color depending on food sources — pink or
lavender means they have been eating mostly crustaceans, while
orange means that they have eaten brine shrimp. These incredible
creatures have no brain!
Photo by Shawn Knapp
 Average size:
7.25 to 11.5 feet in length, up to 1.5 tons
Average life span: 40 years
Key
physical characteristics: Large, ivory tusks (used to pull themselves
out of the water and to break holes in the ice), whiskers (known as mustacial vibrissae) and blubbery bodies
Native
region/habitat range: Arctic Circle, northern seas off Russia and
Alaska, migration to Chukchi from Bering Sea
Eating
habits: Forage on the bottom, rely on vibrissae to locate food; feed on
clams, mussels, bottom dwelling organisms
Conservation status: Least concern
Fun
facts: Their scientific name is Latin for “tooth-walking sea horse.”
Although their bodies appear very cumbersome, they are very agile in the
water and swim very gracefully. Walrus are very social animals, and a group
of walrus is called a herd or pod.
Photo by Jackie Curts
 Average size: 7.25 to 8 feet in length, 900 to 1600 pounds
Average life span: 25 to 30 years
Key
physical characteristics: White coat, slightly webbed paws
with large claws
Native
region/habitat range: Arctic regions
Eating
habits: Hunts both on land and sea; feeds on fish, arctic marine mammals
Conservation status:
Vulnerable
Fun
facts: Under their fur coat, polar bears have black skin – better to
soak up the sun’s warmth. Their fur is actually clear, not white, which
offers camouflage as they move around in the ice and snow. Polar bears
the world's largest bear species. They are generally solitary creatures, and
usually only come together to mate. Pregnant bears dig their dens into snow
mounds and ice floes for protection.
Photo by Shannon Gaughan-Kelly
 Average size:
A few
inches to several feet
Average life span: 60 days to several years
Key physical characteristics:
Varied; colorful and adapted sizes, shapes and
features due to food sources and predator protection
Native region/habitat range:
Worldwide oceans; along coastal, temperate and
tropical environments
Eating habits: Prey on coral polyps, small invertebrates, small fish
Conservation status: Susceptible to coral reef endangerment
Fun facts: The world's oceans are filled with thousands of different species
of reef fish. There are hundreds of reef fish at the Zoo including favorites
like clownfish, blue tangs, as well as urchins, sea stars, shrimp and other
organisms found along the reef.
Photo by Jackie Curts
 Average size:
22
inches, 4.4 to 6.6 pounds
Average life span: 10 years
Key physical characteristics:
Crest of yellow and black spiky feathers above
their eyes
Native region/habitat range:
Islands north of Antarctica, from Chile to New
Zealand
Eating habits: Feeds at sea, swallows whole while swimming; eats primarily
fish
Conservation status: Vulnerable
Fun facts: Rockhoppers often burst from the water at the shoreline and land
with a belly flop.
Photo by Paul Riley
 Average size:
0.5
inches to 6 feet diameter
Average life span:
More than 50 years
Key physical characteristics:
Adhesive pedal disc (foot), cylindrical body
and tentacle-surrounded mouth.
Native region/habitat range:
Throughout oceans worldwide, most often in
coastal tropical waters
Eating habits:
Stings passing prey with venom-filled tentacles; eats
small fish
Conservation status:
Susceptible to climate change and coral reef
endangerment
Fun facts:
Clownfish, covered by a protective layer of mucus, can live
within the protection of the sea anemone’s tentacles, while the anemone
feeds on the scraps from their meals.
Photo by Jackie Curts
 Average
size: 0.6 to 14 inches
Average life span: One to five years
Key physical characteristics: unusual equine shape, prehensile tail used to
latch onto sea grasses and coral, elongated snout
Native region/habitat range:
Shallow waters, both tropical and temperate
throughout the world’s oceans
Eating habits: With their tail, anchor to seaweed and coral while using
their snouts to suck in prey; eat plankton, small crustaceans
Conservation status: Several species vulnerable to extinction
Fun facts: Male sea horses have a brood pouch, and he carries the eggs until
they hatch, then releases fully formed, miniature seahorses into the water.
Fins on their back can flutter up to 35 times per second as they propel
themselves through the water.
Photo by Don Reynolds
 Average size:
Up to 5
feet, up to 27 pounds
Average life span: Females 16 years, males 10 years
Key physical characteristics:
Slender, elongate body, large eyes and
blunt-ended snout; small flattened teeth used for grinding their food
Native region/habitat range:
Western Atlantic Ocean, typically found in
inshore waters, prefers areas with muddy or sandy bottoms
Eating habits: Feeds on crustaceans, small fish, mollusks
Conservation status: Near threatened
Fun facts: The sharks on in our pool at the Indianapolis Zoo are all males.
Females and pups are kept off display. Also known as a smooth dogfish shark
or a dusky smooth-hound. They can change their color from dark to light to
camouflage themselves from predators. They often hunt in packs, part of the
reason they got their name.
Photo by Carla Knapp
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