I visited this unique aquarium after participating in a dolphin watching tour in the Amakusa area of Kumamoto Prefecture. The “Waku waku Kaichuu Suizokukan Sea Donuts”, is a small floating aquarium that is constructed similar to an ocean-going ship but shaped like a giant swimming donut.
The
inner “donut hole” area serves as the facility’s largest tank. The featureless interior of this area
reminded me of the holding tanks that you see in a seafood restaurant –
especially since the fish in this area were mostly of the types that you very
often find at fish markets.
The
photographs below show the interior of the facility. The tanks were not particularly large.
This arch-shaped
tank contained small goldfish.
Some
of the tanks were creatively decorated.
The
specimens kept in this collection were for the most part small in size. Many of the fishes were small enough to fit
in a person’s hand.
There
were even two touch pools containing starfishes and other invertebrates.
Educational Efforts
Most of the signage in this
facility was handmade, and I thought the staff at this aquarium invested a great
deal of effort to provide information about the resident creatures. There were even a number of display signs
written in English.
The
signs on this wall pertained to various fishes caught and used as food.
Moray
eel exhibit with explanatory signage
8
Million Yen Arrowana
Electric
eel
Dolphin Pen
After spending the morning riding
a boat and viewing wild dolphins free in a vast, open sea, it was quite a
contrast to see the relatively small area dedicated to the lone dolphin kept in
captivity at this aquarium.
During
high tide, the area available to the dolphin would be about as large as a
baseball field. During low tide, much of
the pen is left without any water.
Judging by the waterline on the rocks, it looks like the height
difference between tides is about 2 or 3 meters.
At the
time of my visit, the aquarium staff was preparing the dolphin for a physical
examination. The blue tarp under the
dolphin was used to reduce the depth of the water.
The
dolphin appears to be very valuable to the aquarium, both from an aesthetic
point of view and also as a revenue generator.
The facility offers various opportunities for visitors to interact with
the dolphin; starting at 500 yen which allows you to touch the dolphin. The “trainer” experience is available for
2000 yen, and for 3000 yen, visitors can interact
with the dolphin on the beach (during high tide, I presume). I’m sure that the participants in these
activities really enjoy their “interaction” with the dolphin. At the same time, I wonder how the dolphin
feels about it.
Getting There
This
facility is located in Kamiamakusa City in Kumamoto Prefecture. According to a flyer I found at the facility,
there is a bus that runs from Kumamoto train station that takes 90 minutes and
other shorter bus rides from other lesser known bus stops. For travelers who possess a driver’s license recognized
in Japan, a rental car may be the best mode of travel. Just make sure you have a car navigation
system that you know how to operate.
Tickets for adult visitors were 1300 yen, for intermediate school students
800 yen, elementary school students 500 yen, and small children 400 yen.
(Note:
All photos taken in this post were taken during a visit on February 22, 2016. The comments in this post are based on
observations made on that day.
Conditions may have since changed.
Please check it out for yourself!)