Pork Belly could spend ages just looking at fish. He finds them so serene and says if you sit they will come.
That’s probably why we spent more than four hours on our last visit to Sea Life Brighton.
I’m guessing most folk are in and out within two.
On a Monday morning in term-time, it’s a peaceful place.
The customers are mainly families with pre-schoolers, gaping open-mouthed at the giant rays, sharks and sea turtles, having minor heebie-jeebies in the awesome walk-through tunnel and squealing “Nemo” and “Dory” delightedly in the Secrets of the Reef display.
Actually, scratch that, it was mainly the parents exclaiming, but you get the picture.
It’s a great place on a rainy day at the seaside, or to escape from the blistering sun (yes I know that rarely happens in England) with the perfect combination of entertainment and education.
The displays are designed by Sea Life’s aquarists to balance the needs of the animals (who come first) and what the public wants to see.
Conservation at Sea Life Brighton – breed, rescue, protect
It’s all a far cry from when I used to visit as a child.
In those days, it was a dolphinarium, and it was pretty amazing to see those beautiful creatures turn tricks in front of my eyes.
Please don’t judge me. It was the sixties, when sea-life conservation and animal welfare weren’t so high on everyone’s agenda. I wouldn’t go near one now.
But in 1991 the last two remaining dolphins, Missy and Silver were released into the wild and a new style of attraction was born.
Now the ethos is Breed, Rescue and Protect with centres around the country housing marine life that has been stranded, injured or mistreated.
Brighton doesn’t have the facilities to take on mammals like seals, but does rescue terrapins and exotic fish that have outgrown their owners’ aquariums.
Just like puppies, tiny fish can sometimes grow into monsters who need half a house to live in.
They’re also active in breeding programmes for sharks, rays, the endangered Bangai Cardinals, seahorses and pipefish.
Sea Life Brighton make-over
The whole building has undergone a makeover too.
My memories are of somewhere dark, dank and a bit musty smelling.
Now the old Victorian arches are gently illuminated in rainbow colours (LED to be energy efficient), the café has moved to a more central location and there are fun and interactive displays alongside the more traditional tanks.
Entertaining and informative staff are on hand, ready to answer questions and encourage you to find out more.
Getting hands-on with fish
That’s not an easy thing when the welfare of fish is the highest priority and visitors are asked not to bang on the glass, use flash photography or touch the rays who come so beguilingly up to the surface to greet you.
But in the rock-pool area you can gently stroke a starfish (it feels like sandpaper) and touch the tendrils of a sea anemone (gelatinous like those gloopy jelly toys kids love to play with).
They will react, delicately clumping around your finger or sliding away, but don’t seem to be distressed.
Their public appearances are strictly limited – two starfish are brought out to the rock pool every two hours, and the previous two taken back behind the scenes, where they rest for three days before being put on display again.
Turtles, sharks and rays at Sea Life
In the main pool you can watch green sea turtles, sharks and giant ray being fed and hear about their lives both in captivity and the wild.
Walking through the Ocean Tunnel gets you up close and personal to these magnificent sea creatures, and the mini-tunnel in the reef section is a big hit with youngsters.
This was also my favourite area.
I loved reading about the innovative work to restore the coral reefs in the seas around the Maldives, and it seemed a perfect project, balancing the needs of local people with the desire to keep our oceans alive.
Crabs and crustaceans at Sea Life
New in 2017 the Claws exhibition, just before you exit through the gift shop, replaces the old Jurassic Seas collection.
The tanks display a range of crustaceans, from the home-grown (and slightly vicious) velvet swimming crab to the exotic and long-limbed Japanese spider crabs.
A gloriously coloured painted lobster shyly peeps from his underwater cavern.
The extraordinary peacock mantis shrimp, with ballistic front beaters that move so fast they actually boil the water around its prey, lurks behind brilliant white rocks.
And there are the beautiful Violet Land Hermit Crabs living companionably in their borrowed shells.
They’re nimble climbers, so stay a while, and before long you’ll see one slowly emerge and explore the tank’s amazing jungle gym.
Sea Life conservation projects
The conservation message is all around you, but presented in a family friendly way, inviting you to take small steps to make our seas a cleaner, better place.
If the attraction can generate a little bit of empathy in every visitor who then goes away and makes one change, no matter how small, then it has to be worth it.
And if you’re prepared to sit and wait, as Pork Belly was, those inquisitive fish will come and stare at you, while you stare at them, pressing their little noses up against the glass.
7 things you can do to protect our seas
- Recycle as much plastic as possible
- Don’t buy beauty products that contain plastic microbeads
- Take your litter home from the beach (and pick up any you see)
- Do your washing at 30 degrees
- Don’t leave the tap running while you clean your teeth
- Don’t leave your TV on standby
- Use low energy or LED lighting
More information about Sea Life Brighton
Sea Life Brighton was designed by Eugenius Birch and first opened as Brighton Aquarium in 1872
The exhibitions change regularly so for all the latest news, visit the Sea Life Brighton website
Additional photos are copyright Julia Claxton and the Sea Life Brighton.
Disclaimer: We were let loose in the Sea Life Brighton for free, and had a great time.
Where to next?
• Island Life – Isle of Man
• Discounts and deals
• Blue Waters Resort, Antigua