Ray of Fun, Jewels of the Reef & Fish Reflexology
Underwater World Singapore
6th December 2006
Sentosa , Singapore

Ray of Fun, Jewels of the Reef & Fish Reflexology Underwater World Singapore

Have a ray gently feed from your palm or even consider getting a through pedicure done by not your regular sort of pedicurist but by two amazing species of fish. As part of its continuing efforts to introduce more unique and interactive experiences to its visitors, and to differentiate itself from other aquarium, Underwater World Singapore (UWS) unveiled three stunning exhibits – a spectacular ray pool dubbed Ray of Fun, Jewels of the Reef – a fascinating display of marine species of the reef community and the Fish Reflexology, a contemporary spa pool featuring spa fish that nibble gently on the dead skin of your feet. This latest project by UWS amounts to more than half a million dollars.

Ray of Fun

• Home to five different species of rays – the Blue Spotted Stingray (Taeniura lymma), White Spotted Eagle Ray (Aetobatus narinari), Leopard Whipray (Himantura undulate), Cow-nose Ray (Rhinoptera neglecta) and the Brown Stingray (Dasyatis sp).

Dr Jeffrey Mahon, Curatorial Director of UWS commenting on the rationale behind the Ray of Fun, “ We have received many compliments from guests about how guest they enjoyed feeding our Eagle Rays during our Dive with Sharks programme. We wanted more of our guests to enjoy this experience, so we created this pool where visitors can feed the rays while staying dry. To be able to feed these wonderful rays is an experience I’ sure that all will enjoy.”

Price: S$2 per bowl of ray feed

Jewels of the Reef

This island of small tanks displays various rarely seen marine creatures of the reef ecosystem.

• Garden Eels

Garden eels are shy creatures living together in a colony on the sandy sea floor. They grow up to 40 cm in length, although no more than of their bodies are usually seen above the sand. 

• Harlequin Shrimp

The Harlequin shrimp is a shy creature that is rarely spotted in the wild. It tends to hide in reef crevices during the day and feed usually at night. Its specialized claws and limbs are adaptation to allow it to prey on sea stars, which it would over to devour alive.

• Rhinopias Scorpionfish

These rarely swim, but move about by ‘walking’ along the sea bottom on its pectoral and pelvic fins. They hunt by waiting for their prey to approach within striking distance. Sometimes they would rock forward and backward, to mimick pieces of debris on the sea bottom. This camouflages them from both predators and prey. Each scorpionfish is also armed with venomous spines for self-protection.

• Dragon Moray Eel

The dragon moral eel is so-called due to it’s “horns”, which are actually long nostrils located just in front of the eyes, as well as the razor-sharp teeth jutting out of their mouth. The eel uses its excellent sense of smell to hunt down prey at night.

• Pipefish and Seahorse

It is the male seahorse that gets pregnant – the female seahorse passes her eggs into the male’s pouch for fertilization and he carries them until hatch. Pipefishes belong to the same family as seahorses, pipehorses and seadragons, unlike the seahorse, it is the female, not the male ghost pipefish, that take cares of the eggs in its pouch.