Behind the Secret Lives of Seahorses

The newest temp show Monterey has is called the "Secret lives of Seahorses." Many of my afternoons are spent in the holding areas siphoning/cleaning tanks and feeding the seahorses behind the scenes. I think Monterey has the largest and most diverse collection of seahorses right now. Anyone that has ever worked with them knows that they are some of the most high maintenance animals around. They are a ton of work to keep alive. These are just some in holding, including some babies! There are also pics of giving injections and pouch flushes on some males.

Sea turtle enrichment

Here are just a few pictures of the black sea turtles getting back scratches with the scrub brush. This is veronica showing me how for the first time. The turtles love their scrub brush so I try to do it as often as I can. Sometimes I will also freeze their green bell peppers in ice blocks for them to eat. Veronica also puts in strands of bull kelp and lately pumpkins for them to play with.

Penguin stuff

I'm not exactly sure what all was going on here. I just happened to walk by the animal health lab while I think Dr. Mike was doing physicals on some new penguins. One of the penguins just tried to bite people the whole time...hehe!