This post is written for the “Save the Ocean” group-writing project by Pelfy, a journalist-to-be who blogs at Pelfy’s Journey of Love. She enjoys taking photographs and recently found a new hobby — baking.

While I was telling a friend that my article, “Visit an Aquarium” would be published in conjunction to the “Save the Ocean” campaign, she asked, “What has visiting the aquarium got to do with saving the ocean?” I would not say that it was a lame question, in fact I found it interesting as I would be explaining how visiting an aquarium has to do with saving the ocean.

You see, human beings are constantly polluting the ocean with or without intentions. While oil spills kill most of the living creatures in the ocean; plastic bags contribute to the extinction of turtles and cigarette butts pollute our beaches. The number of aquatic animals in the ocean is declining each day.

This means that the more aquatic creatures are becoming extinct, the more we are unable to know its existence. I am sure you do not wish to explain to your kids what a turtle looks like or by just showing them a picture of a turtle.

Therefore, aquaria are important as they serve as a shelter to thousands and thousands of aquatic animals. Below are some facts about an aquarium.

What is an aquarium?

An aquarium (plural aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Aquaria are primarily used for fish-keeping, although invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, and aquatic plants are also housed in aquaria. The term combines the Latin root aqua, meaning water, with the suffix -arium, meaning “a place for relating to” (Source: Wikipedia).

Who are the visitors to the aquarium?

The first group of people that comes to my mind is the youngsters, specifically school-going children because most of the time, school clubs organize trips to the aquarium. That explains the group rates.

Two, the students. The Ministry of Education and most aquaria have joint projects about conserving the marine fishes that have become extinct. Through encouraging more students to take part in various activities, these parties sometimes held special programs to create awareness of the importance of the ocean and marine life to human beings. That is why students have discount rates to the aquaria.

Parents play an important role in educating their children, especially in education. Studies have shown that children learn faster when they are exposed to a particular object. Hence, parents’ efforts of bringing their children to the aquarium is a plus point to a better marine conservation besides learning more about the aquatic creatures.

Senior citizens are also welcomed to visit the aquarium as most of them have not been to snorkeling or diving trips. Thus, chances of them seeing sharks and rays right in front of them are low, but a trip to the aquarium is like a dream come true. They do not need to jump into the water to see clown fish; neither do they need to rent a snorkel mask to see the corals.

Where can you find aquaria?

Aquaria can be found in almost every country. In Malaysia, there are two prominent aquaria — the Aquaria KLCC and Underwater World Langkawi. I will be featuring four aquariums that I’ve visited:

Aquaria KLCC, Kuala Lumpur

I would say that Aquaria KLCC is one of the most unique aquariums around as it is located in a shopping mall. It is also unique because besides focusing on aquatic creatures, Aquaria KLCC also features other tropical rainforest animals such as the Earth Tiger Tarantula, Giant Squirrel, White Handed Gibbon, Cattle Egret and other animals.

All in all, Aquaria KLCC serves as an education platform and an eco-tourism site for visitors. Conservation programs are brought to you in partnership comprising of the Johor National Parks Corporation, Department of Wildlife, Department of Fisheries, National Museum, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, the Melaka Zoo and the KL Bird Park.

Underwater World Langkawi

The largest marine and fresh water aquarium in South East Asia — The Underwater World Langkawi is situated in Kedah. It was first open to the public in 1995 and has since become one of the must-visit destinations in Langkawi.

The concept and theme of Underwater World Langkawi is like other aquaria, which are to serve as an education platform for visitors as well as an entertainment outlet for family members. It is also built to raise awareness of the importance of conserving our aquatic animals, especially those which are becoming extinct.

I have visited Underwater World Langkawi once when I was in high school. Having to visit the aquarium with a group of classmates was definitely a memorable.

Underwater World, Singapore

I have also been to the Underwater World Singapore in Sentosa Island. It is a well-known oceanarium showcasing various marine animals of different sizes and shapes. I remember my trip there a few years ago and there were many others visitors as well as it provides fun, leisure and educational experiences to its visitors.

A statement released by the Underwater World Singapore stated that the aquarium is committed to the conservation and breeding of marine life though active involvement in several environmental projects. Therefore, I recommend if you have extra time in Sentosa Island, do hop in to the Underwater World Singapore as it is really an eye-opener for marine lovers.

Ocean Park, Hong Kong

The catchiest aquarium I’ve ever seen was the one I visited a few years ago at Ocean Park in Hong Kong. That is simply because they have a tank full of sea jellies of all sizes, shapes and colours.

The “Sea Jelly Spectacular” deserves double thumbs up as it allowed me to discover the most amazing and beautiful undersea creature as they swim and glow in their natural environment.

When is the best time to visit an aquarium?

There is no specific time as in when to visit an aquarium, but the recommended time is when the aquarists are doing their routine feeding. It is an eye-opener for visitors as sharks and other creatures can sometimes be tame too. I’ve been to the aquaria for many times and I would consider myself lucky as most of them time, I managed to catch “the shows”.

Why you should visit an aquarium?

Sometimes, people question us by asking, “Why should I pay just to see fish?” The answer here is that we are not paying just to see fish, we also learn from the information provided by the aquarium. Besides, we also get to see other creatures that some might not have seen for the rest of their lives, such as the Clown Fish (nope, I am not talking about watching Nemo on your TV screen) and sharks and rays! There are hundreds and hundreds of reasons why you should visit an aquarium, and you’ll only find them when you visit an aquarium.

So, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and visit an aquarium today!

January 2008 is “Save the Ocean” month here at The Giving Hands. Click here for more information on how you too, can save our oceans, and remember to subscribe to The Giving Hands for your daily updates!