By Nangamso Mabindla

Although the East London Aquarium is not the largest in the country, it has several unique features that make it an important feature in the city.

The aquarium boasts special features, such as:

• more than 400 different specieis of marine and fresh-water animals
• a whale deck and pier, where visitors can watch the migrating Southern Right Whales as they travel along the coast;
• a shark tank built above the shoreline rocks; and
• a rehabilitation pool for birds and fish damaged by human activities, such as pollution or trawling nets.

"We are not as big as some of the other aquariums in the country, like Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, but we have some unique displays which make the aquarium a must-see," says Siani Tinley, chief marine services officer of the aquarium. "It is a modern, sophisticated facility and we are really proud of it."

The whale deck, says Tinley, gives visitors "the opportunity to see these beautiful creatures at close range." The aquarium flies a set of blue flags to notify the public when whales have been sighted.

A star attraction for visitors are the seals. The aquarium holds two shows a day. Tinley says people love the shows because of the clever tricks the animals do. "People attending the shows get excited by their antics and children just love them. Seals are very intelligent."

A recent addition to the aquarium is the shark tank, which has been built next to the seal pool. Built above the rocks, the tank is filled by salt water from the sea. The aquarium has one young shark in the tank. "We want him to feel free in the tank," says Tinley.

The animals are under surveillance, with television cameras monitoring them 24 hours a day. The cameras were installed after several pelicans and penguins were killed in 2001 by someone who broke into the facility. "That was a horrible episode," Tinley says. "We had the camera installed so that we can now watch over the animals and ensure their safety."

The Buffalo City municipality and an organisation called Friends of East London Aquarium supports the facility financially. "But we are always in need of sponsors."

Besides the displays, the aquarium has plenty of work to do behind the scenes. "We maintain the tanks with fish and other specimen and we also rehabilitate other marine animals."

The staff at the aquarium is also involved in research and in coastal zone management; and in drawing up and monitoring by-laws and boat regulations.

"We are also constantly in touch with institutions like Rhodes University, the University of Port Elizabeth, the Port Elizabeth Museum," says Tinley. "We share information about all our events and research."

The aquarium features on the agenda of many schools and tertiary institutions, and special tours are run for such groups. "Actually, there is a school coming to visit the aquarium today."

Tours are available and the aquarium also runs holiday programmes. "When people visit us we want to make a lasting impression," Tinley says.

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