World Aquarium | Structures of Nature

The World Aquarium a longtime haunt of science, mystery and history of sea creatures and more has announced today that it is now home to a bevy of mythical monsters. “Human civilizations have long-standing links to nature through many kinds of creatures real and imagined,” explained Leonard Sonnenschein, President of the World Aquarium. “This collection of over 25 creatures will help visitors explore various cultures, their histories, and see many unusual fact-based recreations of these mythological monsters.”

The collection of mythological monsters includes humanoid creatures such as the werewolf, bigfoot, medusa, mermaids and more, but also includes recreations of several species of dinosaurs some even some unusual sea creatures. The creatures include a kronosaur, velociraptor, ichthyosaur, 2-headed hadrosaur, 2-headed brachiosaurus, archelon, a giant plesiosaur (loch ness monster), tyrannosaurus rex, giant trilobite, giant orthocerus and nautiloid fossils, several ocean giants including a manta ray, sawfish, sailfish, swordfish, hammerhead shark, bull shark, marlin and an oarfish. Mythological human beasts include a Yeti, a medusa, a sea witch, several mermaids, a werewolf, 2 bow spirits, and a Halloween witch.

This is a permanent exhibit is now open to the public.

Yeti
	The yeti is an apelike cryptid said to inhabit the Himalaya Mountains of Nepal and Tibet. Similar to the Sasquatch of this continent, the Nepalese name means “wild man” yeti are cryptids, there existence can neither be proven or disproven.

Sea Witch
	For centuries legends of sea witches have thrived among mariners. These legends of phantoms possessing powers over tide and wind and storms, controlling the fate of seafarers come from the dark side of knowing that the women back home may have a charm or two for there man, son or brother’s safe return from the sea.

A genus of extinct sea turtle, the largest that has ever lived. The largest Archelon fossil, found in the Pierre Shale of south Dakota in the 1970s, measures more than 13.5 feet long, and about 16 feet wide from flipper to flipper. It was a sea going turtle, related to present day Leatherback Sea Turtles. It’s fossils date to 70,000,000 years ago in the Cretaceous Period, when a shallow sea covered most of central North America.

Velociraptor
	The Velociraptor’s name means “swift thief”. A genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur, which existed during the late Cretaceous Period, was turkey sized. It was a bipedal, feathered carnivore, with a stiffened tail, and an enlarged, sickle- shaped claw on each hindfoot, which is thought to have been used to kill its prey.

Great White Shark (Carcharodon Carcharius)
	The Great White Shark is an exceptionally large lamniform shark found in coastal surface waters of all major oceans. The only surviving species of it’s genus (carcharodon) it is the largest known predatory fish, reaching lengths of 20 ft. and weights up to 5,000 lbs.

The Bull Shark is common in shallow coastal waters and rivers in warm climates worldwide. The bull shark is well known for it’s unpredictable, often aggressive behavior. unlike most other marine sharks, bull sharks tolerate fresh water and can travel far up rivers. As a result many scientist agree they are probably the single species, most responsible for attacks on humans. How far up river do they travel, you may ask? What about the 200lb. bull shark found in the Mississippi at Alton Illinois?

Like all sharks, the hammerhead has electrolocation pores called ampullae of Lorenzini. The hammer shape allows wider distribution of these sensors and larger olfactory ducts giving these sharks a definite edge in searching for prey and mates. Hammerheads are live bearers gestating (12 months) 30-55 pups per mating. The ability for Parthenogenisis (asexual reproduction) has now been confirmed because, in these case histories, no paternal DNA have been found.

Chambered Nautilus

The chambered nautilus lives in tropical waters extending from the Andaman Sea east to Fiji and from south of Japan to the Great Barrier Reef. This animal usually lives where the slopes of coral reefs descend into deep waters. During the day, it resides in the cool dark waters at depths from 900 to 2,000 feet and ascends to shallow waters (300 to 500 feet deep) at night to feed.

Brown zebra stripes adorn the dorsal side of its smooth, white, perfectly logarithmic, spiraling shell.

A nocturnal predator/scavenger, the nautilus has about 90 tentacles forming 2 circles around its mouth used as olfactory organs for sensing food. It also has 2 primitive eyes (no outer lens).

The nautilus has an unusually long life for a cephalopod. It takes several years to reach sexual maturity and may live more than 15 years. Once mature this mollusk will reproduce annually. Four modified, fused tentacles form the male sex organ, the spadix.

The spadix passes sperm to the female during mating, which can last hours, fertilizing about a dozen large (1” in length) eggs resembling garlic cloves. Gestation can last 9 months to 1 year.

The nautilus is in no hurry first appearing 500 million years ago during the Cambrian Explosion it is a living fossil, having remained unchanged for 300 million years.

It has out lived it’s conical, tubular-shelled cousin the orthocerus by 200 millionyears.

Werewolf

LOUP-GAROUL - French
LYCANTHROPOS - Greek
LOBOZON - Argentina
SUMANITU WAKASA - Lakota

The werewolf is found in history as ancient as Wepwawet in Lycopolis Upper Egypt. Wepwawet was the pharoahs hunting scout, who later became the Egyptian god of the hunt, and gatekeeper to the underworld, later known as anubis. Wepwawet/Anubis was depicted as a man with the head of a wolf or jackal. In ancient greece we find the legend of Lycaon who Zeus tranforms into a wolf after Lycaon had eaten human flesh. The Loup-garoul of the french culture provides us with one of the most well documented accounts of werewolf activity in history. La bete feroce du Gevaudan, this fierce beast terrorised this province from 1765 to 1872. the king of france ordered a massive hunt of the creature(s) to no end.

In native american culture we find tales of shapeshifting as a shamanic spiritual practice throughout many tribes. In many tribes it is believed, wearing the skin of an animal, while drinking the rain water from it's print, under the full moon, would effect the change.

We now find ourselves closer to home. In the early 1980's on Bray Road near Elkhorn Wisconsin, reliable witnesses saw what looked like a large humanoid wolf, kneeling by the road, eating a roadkill raccoon which it was holding in it's hand/paws these sightings continue. Also, as recently as 09/22/07 in McCone County Montana shepherds and ranchers have been plagued by an "unknown" predator described by two USDA officials as an extremely large bi-pedal wolf.

Here we have a teenage werewolf as depicted in American cinema.

Trilobites
	Trilobites are an extinct form of arthropods that appeared in the 2nd epoch of the Cambrian Period and flourished throughout the lower Paleozoic era before beginning a long decline into the extinction of all trilobite orders, except Proetida, in the Late Devonian Period.

Swordfish (Xiphias gladius)
	Swordfish are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long flat bill (sword). They use the sword to slash their prey for easier seizure, also, the sharp bill adds to their streamline swimming dynamics in the water. The recird known size was a 1,182 lb. specimen taken off Chile in 1953.

Sailfishes are fish living in all the oceans of the world. sailfish mature rapidly, reching 1.2 to 1.5 meters in their first year, and feed on the surface or in mid-depths on smaller pelagic fishes and squid. they are the fastest fish in the ocean having been clocked at speeds of up to 68.5 mph. They rarely exceed 10 ft. in length and rarely weigh more than 200lbs., although larger specimens have been sighted off the shores of Costa Rica.

Mermaids are legendary aquatic creatures with the head and torso of a beautiful human female, and the and tail of a fish. Various cultures around the world have similar legends. The gender-neutral plural is Merfolk. The prefix Mer, in many ancient languages means sea.

The mermaid is a popular subject in art. Around the World Aquarium you will see a number of depictions of these mysterious creatures.

The Sea Hag haunts the waters of Long Island Sound off the port at New Haven Connecticut.

In 1783 a scallywag and charlatan self knighted as “Sir Robert Henway” made an overnight hasty departure from the commonwealth of Virginia by stowing away on a ship bound for Massachusetts. Stopping over in the port at New Haven Connecticut, the ship’s cabin boy discovered Henway who was placed ashore post haste.

Henway saw a new arena of opportunity in New Haven and eventually swindled his way into enough wealth to open a small tavern. He soon hired, fell madly in love with, and married a beautiful young barmaid named Molly. For years the two lived above the tavern brewing and selling, and swilling beer. Then eventually the swindlings of “Sir Robert” caught up to him, and he made a hasty departure aboard a ship bound for India, leaving lovely Molly to deal with his dept. Molly was going to have non of it and stowed away aboard the same ship.

A shiphand, sneaking below deck to pilfer the ships rum stores witnessed, through a rum induced fog, “Sir Robert” kneeling over a young struggling women Henway choking the life from her. Fearing for himself the shiphand scurried above deck to hide, where he saw Henway throwing a limp figure overboard. The next day the captain convened a maritime court. The silver-tongued Henway convinced the captain and all aboard the drunken state of the hand had caused him to imagine the deed. Henway strolled off the ship a free man. Molly’s spirit remained in the harbor to haunt it forever as The Sea Hag.

Oarfish are large, greatly elongated, pelagic Lampriform fish comprising the small family Regalecidae.

Found in all temperate to tropical oceans yet rarely seen, the oarfish family contains four species in two genera. One of these, Regalecus glesne, may reach lengths of from 11 to 15 meters at weights around272 kilograms. These solitary fish dwell in depths of about 1000 meters feeding on zooplankton. the oarfish swims in an undulating serpentine motion and has been known to deliver an electric charge when touched.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Lamprifomes
Family: Regalecidae
Genera: Agrostichthys (streamer fish)
Regalecus (oarfish)

Medusa
	In Greek mythology, Medusa (guardian, protectress) was a monstrous chthonic female. Gazing upon her could turn the onlooker into stone. She was beheaded by the human hero Perseus who averted his gaze using a polished silver platter. Perseus used her head as a weapon until presenting it to the goddess Athena to place upon her shield.

Marlin are large fish closely related to swordfish. Like their cousins they are fast swimmers having been clocked at 56 mph. they are predatory and occur in all oceans. They do have delicious meat, but are more highly prized as a big game fish averaging 4-5ft. in length at weights upwards of 250lbs. The tetrapturus is depicted here though the Pacific Blue Marlin (Makaira indica) can reach more than 7ft. at weights of around 1,470lbs.

The largest of the rays, with the largest known specimen measuring 7.5 feet across its pectoral fins (wings) weighing in at over 3.25 tons.

The manta ranges throughout the tropical seas of the world, typically around coral reefs, filter feeding on plankton and small fish. Mantas also frequent reef-side cleaning stations to be cleaned of parasites by the feeding habits of rasps and angelfish. Mantas are curious about divers and actually enjoy this interaction, having the largest brain of any fish.

Here we see the majesty of underwater flight depicted in a contemporary sculpture.

Kronosaur

One of the largest known marine reptiles of the Cretaceous Period, the Kronosaur was a large Pliosaur, about the size of a school bus.

Around you in Prehistoric Alley are several artists depictions of the kronosaur, and an articulated skeleton.

Brachiosaurus

The “armed lizard” from the Greek, because this sauropod’s forelimbs are longer than its hind limbs, lived during the Late Jurassic Period.

A Herbivore, and one of the largest creatures known to have ever walked the earth, Bachiosaurus are estimated to have weighed in at from 32 to 56 tons.
The first fossilized Brachiosaur was discovered in 1900 by Elmer S. Riggs, in the Grand River Canyon of western Colorado.

Brachiosaurus brancai
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Superorder: Dinosauria
Order: Saurischia
Suborder: Sauropodomorpha
Infraorder: Sauropoda
Family: Brachiosauridae
Genus: Brachiosaurus
Species: B. brancai

Loch Ness Monster (Nessie)

The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid, (an animal whose existence
can neither be proven or disproven) claimed to inhabit Scotland’s Loch Ness
near Inverness, the most voluminous freshwater lake in Great Britain.

One popular theory is that Nessie may be a surviving plesiosaur. Note the articulated, fossilized plesiosaur skeleton above the shark tank.

The ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins, and thrived during the Mesozoic era. Based on fossil evidence they first appeared about 230,000,000 years ago, and disappeared approximately 90,000,000 years ago.

Ichthyosaurs evolved from unidentified land reptiles that moved back into the water during the Triassic Period. They were particularly abundant during the Jurassic Period until they were overtaken as the top aquatic predators by plesiosaurs in the Cretaceous period.

Built for speed, it is estimated that they could swim at speeds up to 25 mph.
similar to modern cetaceans such as whales and dolphins, they were air breathing and viviparous (bearing live young).