Looking Under Water

One of the highlights of my trip to Baltimore was going to the Baltimore Aquarium. This was an after hours event just for the attendees of the conference. I have to tell you that of all the aquariums I’ve visited (and I’ve gone to plenty of them), Baltimore’s was very well done. It isn’t the largest and it doesn’t have the widest variety of animals but they have one of the very best in terms of visual display, education, and layout. I was impressed.
     
The saltwater area has some stunning anemones. These are the pink/salmon color ones (with a couple white ones in the mix). I wanted to include a photo of some of the others but the angle resulted in mostly a reflection of me instead of the contents of the water. I’m also fascinated with brain coral. I’ve done a couple ceramic orbs to mimic brain coral but they pale in comparison to the real thing. In the last photo above you can see the tiny corals that look like fluff on the branches. I wish I could have gotten a close up. They were so delicate!

      
I have no idea about the names of these fish. Really. Fish are not my deal however I couldn’t help but be attracted to these fish. The first one was a lovely blue and yellow with a bright blue mustache that reminded me of Salvadore Dali. The second was a beautiful white fish that had dorsal and ventral fins that extended the length of its body and undulated like a ruffle. I was mesmerized. The last one was such a vivid yellow – the photo does not do it justice.

    
The stingray is a very poisonous fresh water ray found in South America. I think it is called a Potamotrygon henlei or Bigtooth River Stingray or Tocantins River ray. Either way it is beautiful. The last two photos are of fresh water turtles. I really liked the nose on the one in the middle. It made me laugh.