Aquarium Dredges Up Denizens of the Deep

Far beneath the Pacific Ocean’s surface, in a world devoid of sunlight, the poisonous tentacles of a light pink mushroom soft coral close in on a meal, and a translucent eelpout hides from predators by curling up its body.

Not long ago, observing such deep-sea creatures in action had been the privilege of a select few researchers and biologists.

But starting Saturday, after a decade of preparation, the Monterey Bay Aquarium will debut an exhibit of more than 40 species from waters as deep as 3,300 feet. Biologists say it is the largest living deep-sea exhibit in the world.

The new exhibit cost $5 million and will be open until January 2002. These bottom-dwellers may not have the cachet of the sharks and sea turtles that delight visitors in open ocean exhibits, but aquarium officials say deep-sea creatures have a mystique all their own.

“It’s almost as good as seeing an alien from outer space,” said Leighton Taylor, an environmental education consultant and former director of Hawaii’s Waikiki Aquarium. “We can see something that 99.9% of people can never see except on TV . . . and it’s on the other side of the glass.”

The live displays showcase animals that inhabit the canyon walls, the vast mid-water and the sea floor. Visitors can see club-tipped apple anemones, orange-red gorgonians, voracious eel-like hagfish, and bright red mysids, shrimp-like creatures that squirt out liquid to confuse and escape from predators.

In the largest tank, spotted ratfish swim inquisitively near the windows while thorny rockfish and cat sharks cruise in the background.

One of the more bizarre animals is the predatory tunicate. Much like a Venus flytrap, a tunicate’s translucent mouth clamps shut to feed when tiny animals drift in.

In addition to the live tanks, an art gallery, video presentations and child-friendly interactive displays further illustrate life in the deep sea. The exhibit points out the resources available from the deep sea, and the impact people are having on the health of the ocean ecosystem.

“We want people to realize that life in the deep sea is diverse and abundant,” said Randy Kochevar, the exhibit’s project director and research scientist. “Although it seems remote, the deep sea impacts our lives and what we do impacts the ocean.”

A remotely operated submersible with robotic arms collected most of the animals in the deep chasms of the Monterey Bay Canyon. The canyon, with depths rivaling those of the Grand Canyon, is unusually close to shore. It plunges as deep as two miles and extends 60 miles out to sea.

The animals were collected at depths of 1,000 to 3,300 feet. They live in conditions of extremely low oxygen levels, temperatures as cold as 40 degrees Fahrenheit and water pressure close to 1,500 pounds per square inch.

But the same characteristics that enable these creatures to withstand the demands of deep-sea life also make them incredibly fragile when brought to the surface. Not all survive the trip.

“We do such a focused job of collecting that we don’t feel we pose a significant threat,” Kochevar said.

“It’s like going into the Grand Canyon and picking a few wildflowers,” he said. “And if we can create a sense of wonder and understanding with the public, then the gains far outweigh what little impact we do make.”

Replicating the conditions necessary for such a variety of creatures to survive long enough for public viewing has been an ongoing challenge for the aquarium.

An attempt was made to develop a high-pressure tank, but it was found to be impractical and eventually abandoned. That’s why animals sensitive to pressure are not part of the exhibit, Kochevar said.

Researchers have had better luck keeping oxygen levels low and water temperatures cool in refrigerated tanks. They have also adjusted lighting and diet to better re-create the deep-sea habitat.

Biologists say the deep sea represents the last piece in completing a picture of Monterey Bay’s ecology, an effort the aquarium began with its near-shore exhibits when it opened in 1984.

“It is the last frontier,” said Gil Van Dykhuizen, a research biologist for the aquarium. “We know less about the deep sea than we do the surface of the moon.”