New fish, sharks and rays have arrived as the updated Tropical Reef Aquarium gets its finishing touches. The Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium healthcare team has been working diligently to ensure each new resident moves into their new home in good health.
Some of the new residents include an Australian whipray, zebra sharks and whitetip reef sharks.
Aquarists slipped into their drysuits and into the water to secure the sharks for their exams. Once in hand, the sharks were turned upside down to induce tonic immobility. This is when the shark enters a relaxed, trance-like state that allows the aquarists to handle them more easily.
Associate Veterinarian Dr. Kadie Anderson started by performing physical exams on the sharks and then collected blood, an important part of assessing their overall health. She finished with an ultrasound to examine their organs to make sure they appeared normal.
Each shark was then measured and weighed and then released back to their holding pool.
Simultaneously, Head Veterinarian Dr. Karen Wolf worked with the Australian whipray.
The whipray was anesthetized and transferred to a holding pool where Veterinary Technician Sara collected its blood to be analyzed.
Dr. Wolf completed a physical exam, performed an ultrasound, and finished by using an endoscope (small camera) to evaluate the whipray’s gills and to screen them for parasites.
Everything looked great. The blood samples were sent to be analyzed and each of the new residents checked out with a clean bill of health, which means Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium’s zebra sharks, whitetip reef sharks and Australian whipray are ready to move into their new home in the Tropical Reef Aquarium. The Tropical Reef Aquarium opens to the public on Friday, June 14 and is included with admission or membership.
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