The toothy pair called 'Fiona' and 'Cheryl' which are almost six years old and one metre long, originate from an alligator farm in Australia, but have grown up at Butterfly Creek.

The alligators were collected by aquarium staff earlier in the week and made the trip to Napier by road.

National Aquarium of New Zealand manager Rob Yarrall says the pair travelled very well. When we arrived in Auckland the alligators were ‘hanging out’ in their normal enclosure. We took with us two specialist made containers for them to travel in to ensure they were well protected and comfortable during their journey.

"Apart from a couple of stops along the way to check on our new friends, the pair travelled without a hitch. They seem pleased to be in their new home and are settling in well," says Mr Yarrall.

Fiona and Cheryl will share residences on the first floor of the aquarium with Terrapins in a Florida Everglades themed enclosure which the aquarium team have built to mirror their natural American habitat.

The Alligators are now on display at the National Aquarium so come in and check these cool little girls out!

Dinosaur Discovery Display

The Dinosaur Discovery Display is now open for public to visit! There are still finishing touches happening to the new Waste Aware classroom before it is opened.

New Baby Piranha have arrived!

We have just received 40 new baby piranha which are only three months old. They may look cute and small but these little fish already have mighty sharp little teeth.

The babies have travelled from the far shores of Germany where they were bred and arrived in New Zealand where they were placed in quarantine in New Plymouth for six weeks before being transported to our Aquarium.

When they arrived each fish was individually packed in their own tall narrow plastic bag containing water and oxygen. No neighbours are allowed in a bag because in the dark if piranha bump into one another their natural instinct is to attack. Let’s just say many bags would turn up empty! Because the fish are tropical, the polystyrene containers holding the bags had heat pads on the base to keep them nice and toasty warm.

As babies our new arrivals are silver with dark spots, but as they grow older their colour changes. With maturity there spots will fade and they will develop a silver glitter effect and a red underbelly.

Our new babies have settled in so well to their new home. In fact, when the bags got emptied into their tank at the Aquarium, they zipped and zoomed around in complete excitement! They have now quietened down and are schooling around their tank.

Come and see our new babies soon. You’ll find them on the first floor of the National Aquarium of New Zealand.

Maori Languag Week– 4 -10 July 2011

Maanakitanga is the theme for Maori Language Week 2011. Using hospitality as the focus, we will offer free entry to primary classes to Pania Reef and Oceanarium areas. Participants will need to greet us in Te Reo and complete a Te Reo Fish Hunt.

Contact the Education Team on 833-5424 to make a booking.

For more information on Maori Language Week you can contact Betty Hauraki on 471 6042 or visit this website.

Congratulations to all our 2011 Seaweek poetry competition winners!

Category	Place	Winners Name
Primary	1	William Laver
Primary	2	Zarah Otto
Primary	3	Hugh Taylor
Primary Highly Commended	HC	May Downey
Primary Highly Commended	HC	Sue - Anne Albert Hovell
Primary Highly Commended	HC	Lily August
Intermediate	1	Tiri Thompson
Intermediate	2	Karena Ngarewa Cribb
Intermediate	3	Belle Mitford
Intermediate Highly Commended	HC	Alexandra Coddington
Intermediate Highly Commended	HC	Brianna Otto
Intermediate Highly Commended	HC	Pourewa Sidney
Secondary	1	Jordan Tinsley - Yates
Secondary	2	Jesse Hape
Te Reo Winners	1	Alana Broughton
Te Reo Winners	2	Te Aotaihi Kutua-Ngata
Te Reo Winners	3	Kahurangi Delamere-Fisher
Te Reo Highly Commended	HC	Rianna Wakefield
Te Reo Highly Commended	HC	Maiora Thatcher
Adult	1	Emily Otto
Adult	2	Rose Whittaker
Adult	3	Marie Dunningham