i love you great white sharks i love you tiger sharks i love you small spotted catsharks i love you bamboo sharks i love you spiny dogfish sharks i love you greenland sharks i love you sand tiger sharks i love you dusky sharks i love you bull sharks i love you pajama sharks i love you nurse sharks i love you zebra sharks i love you leopard sharks i love you whale sharks  i love you port jackson sharks i love you sawsharks i love you scalloped hammerhead sharks i love you bonnethead sharks i love you lemon sharks i love you copper sharks i love you bronze whaler sharks i love you mako sharks i love you great hammerhead sharks i love you oceanic whitetip sharks i love you thresher sharks i love you whitetip reef sharks i love you blacktip reef sharks i love you epaulette sharks i love you port jackson sharks i love you zebra bullhead sharks i love you wobbegong sharks i love you angel sharks i love you megamouth sharks i love you basking sharks i love you coral catsharks i love you spinner sharks

Seahorses!

Did you know that they can move their eyes independently of each other?

Pacific coral reef!

Corals are not only beautiful, they’re so important! They’re homes for dozens of different kinds of fish; notably the many yellow tangs in these pictures (:

Lions mane jellies <3

My work added these recently..they’re gorgeous (: I almost never get a chance to visit the jellies so this was a wonderful surprise for me today!

Blue blubber jellies!

Though commonly called jellyfish, they’re not actually fish— they’re a part of the invertebrate family referred to as ‘Cnidaria’ (nye-dare-ia).

Jellies are one of the oldest things on the planet, being around much longer than trees!

Even though they’re called ‘blue’ blubber jellies, they can actually be found in several different colors as you can see in the pictures; like white, brown, purple etc.

Fun fact, blue blubber jellies are delicacies in some parts of the world, if properly prepared. Though I don’t think I could bring myself to eat one, I’m so curious about what it would be like haha. Being almost 100% water, that’s got to be an interesting experience!

Introduction:

My name is Zara, I’m 21 years old and I live on the Chesapeake Bay. This account is documentation of me pursuing my dreams of becoming an aquarist. I’m currently in school working on a bachelor degree in biology while working at my local aquarium.

All content I post will be my own photos + videos I’ve taken unless stated otherwise. Feel free to save them if you’d like, I love sharing it with people (:

If you’re aware that any information I post is incorrect, please reach out and let me know (respectfully), I’m just learning as I go on, and am always open to listen.

This is also a safe space. Anything disrespectful gets deleted immediately. But if anyone ever needs someone to talk to, feel free to send me a message. <3

My states reptile— the diamondback terrapin

Did you know no two terrapins are exactly alike? Like our fingerprints, each of them have different patterns/markings on their skin + shells!

If you grew up in Maryland, you may have had the chance to raise a couple of them in school. I was lucky enough to have been able to do it three times, it was a great experience. I hope they’re all doing well (:

Have you ever seen a stone fish before?

One of my favorites. The most venomous fish in the ocean, living mainly around shallower waters of the Indo-Pacific region.

Keep an eye out while you’re at the beach..if you see a rock, don’t step on it!

Have you ever seen a stone fish swim?

Kinda wacky looking, yet quite graceful

The Peacock Mantis Shrimp

This little buddy lives at my work

He can pack a punch as powerful as a 22 caliber bullet!

The aquarium didn’t name him, so I named him Jarvis

This is Jarvis in motion: