Baltimore Family Attractions - The National Aquarium Part 6

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What kind of animals will you see at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland? Continued from Part 5

Johnston’s Freshwater Crocodile

The Johnston’s freshwater crocodile is equally as fast on land or water. They may gallop at speeds up to 18 miles per hour. They have powerful tails and strong legs. They are not generally dangerous to humans, but can inflict serious injury with their sharp teeth.

Laughing Kookaburra

The laughing kookaburra is Australia’s national symbol. It is about the size of a crow with short tail and a long, wide sharp bill. The call of the kookaburras is commonly used in movies to imitate the sound of monkeys in a jungle. They are approximately 45 cm in length and have a large head with a prominent brown eye and a very large bill.

Fly River Turtle: This aquatic turtle is the only freshwater turtle with flippers resembling those of marine turtles. The nose resembles that of a pig with nostrils at the front of a fleshy protruding snout. In Australia, their distribution is limited to northern Australia. They are also found in Irian Jaya and southern New Guinea. Habitat includes rivers, estuaries, lagoons, lakes, swamps, and pools.

Rainbow Lorikeets have blue on the head and belly, orange or red on the breast, green under the tail, back, and wings, and a red bill. With such a color combination you would think the Rainbow Lorikeet is easy to spot, but in their native habitat, lorikeets’ intense coloration is the perfect camouflage.

Snake-necked Turtle: Also known as the long-necked turtle has a neck so long that it can equal or exceed the length of its shell. This turtle is also known by the name of “the stinker” because of the skunk-like musk the turtle expels when threatened. In the wild the snake-neck turtle feeds on mollusks, crustaceans, tadpoles, and small fish.

Spiny-tailed Monitor also known as the ridge-tailed monitor, exists in a number of sizes and colors throughout northwestern Australia. The most notable characteristic of this species is the spiny tail shared by all members of the species regardless of size, origin or gender. The tail is useful in hunting as the lizard whips it around as a large spiky club to attack prey.

Zebra Finch is a beautiful little bird that resembles the large mammal for which it is named in that it has bright black and white “zebra” stripes along its body. The Aquarium houses only males of this species. The female is approximately the same in appearance with the exception of her striped chest, which is a soft grey color.

Amphibians

The most familiar amphibians are frogs, toads and salamanders. Amphibians are cold-blooded, smooth-skinned vertebrates that are capable of living both on land and in water.

American Bullfrog varies in color from brownish to shades of green and often with spots or blotches of a darker color on the back. Breeding males let out a deep bass jug-a-rum call that can be heard over a distance of more than half a mile.

The Blue Poison Dart Frog is a little frog easily recognized by their blue color that is generally darker on the limbs and belly and overlaid with black spots or patches especially on the head and back. The poison dart frog can release toxins from the skin that are distasteful and potentially lethal to predators. Three very toxic species of poison dart frogs from Columbia and South America are utilized by Indians to poison the tips of blowgun darts.

Birds

Birds are varied creatures inhabiting all parts of the world. The most unique defining feature of birds is “feathers.” All have wings and all but a few species fly.

Atlantic Puffin can be recognized by their large, triangular-shaped bill with red-orange tip and blue-gray base surrounded by yellow.

Other animals you can expect to see at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland include:

• Blue-gray tanager
• Scarlet ibis
• Sunbittern
• White-tailed Trogon
• Yellow-headed Amazon Parrot
• Banggai Cardinalfish
• Bonnethead shark
• Clearnose skate
• Electric eel
• Feather Blenny
• Green Moray Eel
• Nurse Shark
• Rosyside dace
• Sand tiger shark
• Sheepshead Minnow
• Southern Stingray
• Striped Burrfish
• Summer Flounder
• Blue Crab
• Chambered Nautilus
• Giant Pacific Octopus
• Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin
• Golden Lion Tamarin
• Pygmy Marmoset
• Giant Amazon River Turtle
• Green Sea Turtle

This concludes a series of articles about the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a tourist attraction all age groups interested in aquatic life will enjoy.

For more contact information about the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland, follow the link in the resource box of this article.

This article is FREE to publish with the resource box.

© 2007 Connie Limon All Rights Reserved

Written by: Connie Limon. For more information about the history of Baltimore, Maryland, living, working and vacationing in Baltimore Maryland visit http://www.charmcitybaltimore.info To submit your original articles for web site promotion and find a variety of FREE reprint articles visit http://www.camelotarticles.com

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