October 11, 2007

VANCOUVER AQUARIUM UNVEILS TWO BRAND NEW AMAZON EXHIBITS

Vancouver, BC: The Vancouver Aquarium unveiled new marmoset and bat exhibits today in the Graham Amazon Gallery.

The Aquarium is home to two different species of marmosets. Sesame, a four-year-old male, is a pygmy marmoset while Cindy, a three-year-old female, is a common marmoset.

Pygmy marmosets are the smallest species of monkey in the world and can be found in Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia and Brazil, while the slightly larger common marmoset is found primarily in Brazil. Sesame came to the Aquarium after Victoria’s Crystal Gardens closed in 2004, and Cindy arrived from the Toronto Zoo last year as a companion for him.

Visitors will enjoy watching Sesame and Cindy eat, play and nap together. They spend their time leaping from branch to branch, communicating with one another in high-pitched calls that sound similar to bird calls.

The exhibit will also house a variety of fish, including cichlids, characins and catfish. Catfish and characins graze on algae, which will help keep the exhibit clean, and the characins also like the fruits and vegetables dropped by the marmosets.

The Jamaican fruit bats, the only species on display at the Aquarium, are a neo-tropical species native to central Brazil. Unlike some species, these bats aren’t out to feast on blood: they prefer to eat a variety of fruits like melons, bananas, apples, and papaya.

There are over 100 bats in the exhibit, and when they all flock to their food at once in a feeding frenzy it will be quite the sight for Aquarium visitors.

In addition to being on display, the bats will be a part of the Aquarium’s ‘World of the Weird’ Halloween celebrations, taking place from October 19-31. Bat talks and feeds will be happening regularly between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. during this time. 

Cindy, a three-year-old common marmoset, was introduced to her new home today.

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For more information, please contact:

Brenda Jones

Manager, Public Relations

publicrelations@vanaqua.org