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Welcome back, chambered nautiluses!
The wait is over, chambered nautiluses are back on display in the Aquarium’s “Tentacles” special exhibition!
Nautiluses are survivors of an ancient ocean that once teems with shelled cephalopods, before competition with fishes and catastrophic extinction events nearly wiped them all out. Chambered nautiluses have existed in some form for over 500 million years, living a scavenging life in the darkness of the deep sea.
Having survived everything Nature has thrown at them so far, their biggest hurdle is surviving us and our love of their shells! Nautiluses live 20+ years, and grow and reproduce very slowly. The unsustainable harvest of nautiluses for their shells is putting pressure on populations worldwide.
Our nautiluses are here has a part of scientific research efforts to better understand their life cycle. We’ve partnered with researchers in Fiji who are working to protect and manage these animals, and we hope to inspire people to conserve nautiluses in the wild.
Help us spread the word to leave the shells to the nautiluses, and let’s all join together and show the world some appreciocean for these masterful mollusks!
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