 LOCATION:
886 Cannery Row
, Monterey, CA 93940
, USA
Phone: 0001-831-648-4800
URL: http://www.mbayaq.org
 KEY WORDS:
children, family, hands-on, learning
 ANIMALS:
| Family: | Species: | Common Name: | Capacity: |
| Acropora sp. | Staghorn coral | |
| Amphiprion ocellaris | ocellaris clownfish | |
| Anthopleura sp. | anenomes | |
| Artedius corallinus | coralline sculpin | |
| Balanus sp. | barnacles | |
| Calloplesiops altivelis | marine betta | |
| Caulastrea furcata | Trumpet or candy cane coral | |
| Centropyge loriculus | flame angelfish | |
| Cetosarus bicolor | bicolor parrotfish | |
| Chiloscyllium plagiosum | white-spotted bamboo shark | |
| Chromis sp. | green damselfish | |
| Diadema antillarum | long-spined urchin | |
| Enchelycore paradalis | dragon moray eel | |
| Euphyllia anchora | anchor coral | |
| Galaxea sp. | Galaxy coral | |
| Gibbonsia montereyensis | crevice kelpfish | |
| Gobiesox maeandricus | northern clingfish | |
| Gomphosus varius | bird wrasse | |
| Gymnothorax spp. | moray eel | |
| Heniochus acuminatus | longfin bannerfish | |
| Hippocampus erectus | lined seahorse | |
| Hydnophora exesa | Horn coral | |
| Linckia laevigata | blue star | |
| Lithopoma gibberosa | red turban snail | |
| Lobophyllia sp. | Brain coral | |
| Lobophytum sp. | Devil hand leather | |
| Lysmata amboinensis | common cleaner shrimp | |
| Merulina scabricula | Ruffled Lettuce | |
| Montipora capitata | Rice coral | |
| Montipora capricornis | Plate coral | |
| Montipora digitata | Velvet finger coral | |
| Mytilus edulis | bay/blue mussel | |
| Opistognathus aruifrons | yellow head jawfish | |
| Pachyseris rugosa | Elephant skin coral | |
| Pagurus sp. | hermit crab | |
| Paracanthurus hepatis | blue tang | |
| Petrolisthes spp. | porcelain crabs | |
| Phycodurus eques | leafy sea dragon | |
| Pisaster sp. | starfish | |
| Pocillopora damicornis | Cauliflower coral | |
| Pseudanthias pleurotaenia | squarespot Anthias | |
| Sarcophyton sp. | Toadstool Leather | |
| Scarus niger | dusky parrotfish | |
| Scarus perspicilatus | blue parrotfish | |
| Scarus rubroviolaceus | ember parrotfish | |
| Seriatopora hystrix | Bird's nest coral | |
| Sinularia dura | Cabbage leather | |
| Sinularia sp. | Finger leather | |
| Spheniscus demersus | African blackfooted penguin | |
| Stylophora pistillata | Club Foot coral | |
| Tridacna sp. | giant clam | |
| Turbinaria reniformis | Yellow scroll coral | |
| Turbo sp. | turbo snail | |
| Zebrasoma flavescens | yellow tang | |
 AWARDS:
2002 AZA Education Award
2002 AZA Exhibit Significant Achievement Award
 DESCRIPTION:
"Splash Zone" is a colorful gallery that blends live-animal experiences with hands-on learning. It features nearly 60 species, from South African blackfooted penguins to leafy sea dragons, living corals, moray eels and tropical sharks. There are 30 hands-on exhibits as well as age-appropriate play areas and educational staff-led programs for general visitors. Visitors journey through two ocean habitats: the tropical waters of "Crowded Coral Reefs", and the cooler, temperate waters of "Rough Rocky Shores". From title graphics to wall treatments, there is color and texture everywhere, evoking in realistic ways the habitats depicted in the displays. Textured coral-like walls lead visitors through the colorful world of tropical reefs. Live exhibits include a Coral Reef Community display with living corals, a cove with several species of moray eels, jawfish poking out of their burrows, and circling reef sharks. Farther along, children can climb inside a giant clam chair then see the real thing in a Coral Crawl tunnel. They emerge at the Coral Reef Play area where there are costumes, puppets, ride-on sea creatures, a cave and a climb-up, slide-down stage to encourage imagination and interactive play. Staff also lead participatory programs, some of which are based on "Splash Zone" songs. Nearby "Coral Cove" is for younger children (to age 3), with activities, live exhibits and tips to parents on ways to play with toddlers.
In the rocky shore habitat, crashing waves and simulated granite outcrops are the backdrop for a waterplay exhibit. Here children can learn how different fishes swim and how some rocky shore animals hang onto rocks while others ride the waves. An interactive live display lets children see how clingfish stick to rocks when the tide goes out. There is a specially designed touch pool where families can gather and discover together the secrets of intertidal animals and plants. A final highlight is a colony of blackfooted penguins from temperate South African waters. A bubble window and underwater tunnel put families "inside" the exhibit to observe these birds up close. There are hands-on displays, a penguin mural that makes for a perfect family photo opportunity; and 3 to 6 daily interactive staff presentations that explore penguin adaptations.
The creators of "Splash Zone" drew on years of careful study on how children and families learn during visits to an aquarium; and on principles established by children's museums, early childhood education experts and informal education specialists. Findings from the National Science Foundation-funded Philadelphia-Camden Informal Science Education Collaborative (PISEC) Family Learning Project provided a foundation for the development of "Splash Zone". The PISEC study identified characteristics that underlie successful family learning in a museum setting - all of which were addressed in exhibit components. Among them are exhibits that a family group can see or touch at the same time; that are comfortably used by adults and children together; that prompt group discussion; appeal to different learning styles; and enhance existing knowledge and experience.
 SIZE:
Space allocation in square meters:
| use | indoors | outdoors | total exhibit |
| accessible | total | accessible | total |
| animals | | | | | |
| visitors | | | | | |
| others | | | | | |
| total | | | | | 289 |
 COSTS:
USD 2,650,000 including 5 % for design.
 OPENING DATE:
8 April 2000
 DESIGN:
Beginning:
- Exhibit Design: aquarium staff, Monterey
- Graphic Design: aquarium staff, Monterey
 CONSTRUCTION:
Beginning: October 1999
 LOCAL CONDITIONS:
 PLANTS:
The plant list specifies the Latin names of the plants used for this exhibit.
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO ANIMALS:
To safeguard animal health, each tank has temperature, oxygen and high-water sensors. All are connected to a PLC (Programmable Logic Control) for 24 hour/7day a week monitoring of life-support systems. Air- and water-quality parameters are tested regularly. Sea water from all tanks with exotic species is treated with ozone prior to discharge. An independent air-handling system was installed at the penguin exhibit to maintain the highest air quality for these sensitive birds.
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO KEEPERS:
All behind-the-scenes service areas were ergonomically designed so that aquarists can safely maintain the exhibits.
 FEATURES DEDICATED TO VISITORS:
Exhibit windows and low steps allow both small children and adults to see easily into the live exhibits. Children can crawl through, climb on, slide down and pop up in displays simulating the habitats as they watch and learn about the living creatures that call these waters home. Bilingual graphic panels and a carry-around "dive card" welcome families in Spanish and English and provide information about exhibit animals.
"Splash Zone" galleries, including signage, size of passageways, use of ramps and heights of counters meet all requirements of the "Americans with Disabilities" Act and fire safety codes.
 INTERPRETATION:
Hands-on exhibits let kids touch (artificial) coral and sharkskin, and discover the length of moray eels. An interactive game encourages kids to match fishes with their foods. They are rewarded with sounds and video of fishes eating.
The learning experience extends into the home through a "Splash Zone" children's CD with nationally known singer Linda Arnold; an activity book for families; two children's books about the rocky shore and coral reef habitats; and "Splash Zone" learning activities on our web site. Also, a series of education programs that use the galleries to establish connections to ocean life with young learners and their families were created. These include a partnership with low-income Hispanic preschool students in regional Head Start programs that involves school visits by our staff, programs in "Splash Zone" galleries, and outreach to Head Start families.
 MANAGEMENT:
 RESEARCH:
"Splash Zone" has been the subject of intensive formative evaluations (prototype testing of exhibit elements during the design and development phase) and comprehensive summative evaluations to determine if it is meeting its goals. Formative evaluation in 1997 included 50 open-ended interviews with visitors to identify the experiences and amenities they wanted to see in a family-oriented exhibit-comments incorporated into "Splash Zone" programs and design. In 1998 and 1999, another 584 visitors tested prototype exhibit components so they could be fine-tuned and determined whether they did, indeed, facilitate family learning. Summative evaluation of the exhibit in 2001 included exit interviews with 281 families and 55 children; behavioral observations of 169 children in the exhibit; and analysis of monthly exit surveys. These evaluations found that the exhibit is very popular, intensely used and rich with educational benefits for families; 83 percent of the parents surveyed believe "Splash Zone" helps their children to care about nature. The exhibit is proving popular among adults without children, too.
 CONSERVATION:
"Splash Zone“ was designed to inspire conservation of the oceans. Since the target audience is children ages 0 to 9, there is a focus on forging their connection to and passion for the natural world. “Splash Zone” provides four key types of experiences to support connections with the ocean: opportunities for families to experience wonder together; to physically explore two ocean habitats; to play and experiment with animal adaptations to rocky shore and coral reef habitats; and to talk with staff and each other. Specially trained staff and guides are in the exhibit at all times to facilitate family learning, interpret and present programs. In addition, the aquarium developed a series of programs and messages for families and for parents to raise awareness about coral reef, rocky shore and penguin conservation issues. Exhibit labels and programs focus on raising awareness about the fragility of coral reefs and the importance of protecting ocean habitats. They also focus on engaging families in ways to help take care of nature near them or in the world. The aquarium is active in the Species Survival Plan for blackfooted penguins. It has enjoyed tremendous success with captive propagation of corals, and has supplied 22 species of captive-grown corals to 13 aquariums in the United States and internationally. Staff also contributes to understanding about the care of leafy sea dragons.
 LOCAL RESOURCES:
To supplement the work of staff aviculturists, a team of 36 volunteers has been assembled and trained to assist with care of the penguins. The volunteers assist in exhibit cleaning and in daily penguin feedings, which are presented as a public program. |
 |
| 51K | 88K |
| Site Plan |
| ©Monterey Bay Aquarium, 2000 |
 |
| 91K | 131K |
| Leafy Sea Dragon (5) |
| ©Randy Wilder, 2000 |
 |
| 61K | 110K |
| Blackfooted Penguins Up Close (7) |
| ©Randy Wilder, 2000 |
 |
| 82K | 119K |
| Moray Eel (22) |
| ©Randy Wilder, 2000 |
|
