![]() Lionfish are native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans, but in 2000 were confirmed as having established themselves in North Carolina. They are both known for their inconspicuous, venomous spines. These displays include spiny lobsters, the red lionfish ( Pterois volitans), and a North Carolina native, the spotted scorpionfish. The Exotic Aquatics Display features animals native to Indo-Pacific and other ocean regions. The Spadefish Sculpture outside the main entrance of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher. ![]() The 24-foot (7.3 m)-deep replica of an offshore reef affords two-story, multi-level views of large sharks, stingrays, groupers, and moray eels. Holding 235,000 US gallons (890,000 L 196,000 imp gal), Cape Fear Shoals is the largest of the aquarium's saltwater exhibits. This exhibit have been opened on July 1, 2011, and includes projections on a 23-ft curved screen, as well as interactive holograms and touch-screen interfaces. A new multimedia suite features an extinct whale-eating shark called megalodon. The gallery also displays octopus, jellyfish, and corals native to the state's waters. The Open Oceans Gallery includes Sharkstooth Ledge, which features fish common to offshore North Carolina, such as pufferfish, hogfish, and filefish. Masonboro Inlet Jetty features the fishes common around a wave-washed rock jetty, an indoor salt marsh, a sea horse habitat, and a loggerhead sea turtle display. The Coastal Waters Gallery, which includes the Coquina Outcrop Touch Pool, provides hands-on opportunities to learn about sea urchins, horseshoe crabs, whelks, and other creatures of a rocky outcrop surf zone. In 2006, the aquarium opened an exhibit featuring the venomous snakes of the region, including several species of rattlesnake, copperheads, and cottonmouths. An albino alligator exhibit opened in 2009. American alligators native to North Carolina occupy one of the larger exhibits in the Conservatory. Box turtles hide among the Conservatory's groundcover. In this large, tree-filled atrium, streams, ponds and swamps are home to frogs, snakes, bass, catfish, and perch. The Cape Fear Conservatory, the visitors' first stop in the aquarium, features freshwater life. The aquarium was recently named among the Best Aquariums in the United States by the Travel Channel and is one of the Top Ten Attractions in North Carolina. The focus of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, in Kure Beach, is to educate visitors about the waters of the Cape Fear region. All three aquariums feature dive shows, live animal encounters, and feeding programs. ![]() All are operated by the Aquariums Division of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources since 1976 and were accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. ![]() North Carolina Aquariums is a system of three public aquariums located in Kure Beach, Roanoke Island and Pine Knoll Shores. A "Live Dive!" program at the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores.
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