20 things to give you a better idea about the Marine Life Park (MLP).
1. The MLP will be the world’s largest oceanarium when it opens in 2012, housing over 100,000 fishes in over 55 million litres of water. There will be species of fish such as non endangered sharks, variety of rays, jellyfish, moray eels and others.
2. There will be activities suitable for guest of all ages. At the Reef Swim, guests will be able to snorkel amongst thousands of brightly colored tropical fish. Guests can hop in an innertube to tour the 620m Adventure River which includes an underground grotto or experience fun and excitement of our exhilarating water slides.
3. We believe that controlled wildlife collections of particular species intended for quality zoological facilities is a worthy practice; it helps to increase our understanding of the species, as well as for breeding purposes. Our sentiments are echoed by CITES, which regulates the trade of animals to protect wildlife species from extinction.
4. At no time have we compromised the care, safety and well-being of our dolphins. Our dolphins have been in our care for three years. They have acclimated to human care, and we are confident they will continue to thrive.
5. Since their collection to the present time we have been faithful to the standards set by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). It will continue to be the same when they take up residence at the MLP next year.
6. At ALL our facilities – Subic, Langkawi and later the MLP – the space for our dolphins to swim around well exceed international accreditation standards.
7. As an organization, we will not in any way compromise ethical standards in the course of business operations. This extends to the treatment of the marine life in our care.
8. Research will be one of our core focus areas. Various studies have demonstrated that research with marine mammals under the care of reputable zoological facilities has been, and continues to be, instrumental in increasing our understanding of dolphin perceptual and cognitive abilities, dolphin communication, dolphin physiology and reproduction as well as dolphin social behaviour (Stan A. Kuczaj II, 2010), among others.
9. Interaction with humans is a natural instinct exhibited and observed even among dolphins in the wild. Based on recent research by the Alliance of Marine Mammals and Aquariums, the estimated median lifespan of bottlenose dolphins in human care is now nearly double that of dolphins in the wild.
10. Dolphins have been bred successfully in marine parks, demonstrating that dolphins can adapt to human care. We plan to start a dolphin breeding programme at MLP in partnership with Via Delphi in Mexico, one of the oldest and most successful dolphin breeding facilities in the world.
11. We lost two dolphins to a water-borne bacterial infection Melioidosis in 2010. This disease afflicts many species of animals in domestication as well as in the wild. It can also be contracted by humans. We will be participating in efforts to learn more about Meliodosis.
12. We will not conduct ‘animal shows’ at our park.
13. The MLP team comprises animal lovers who devote their career to providing professional care for the marine mammals. Some of them are highly respected veterinarians and experts from various fields in marine husbandry.
14. Millions of people visit marine life parks around the world each year. Their encounters have inspired many to take up careers in marine biology, veterinary science, and to take action on marine conservation. We hope that our MLP can similarly inspire many of our visitors.
15. Education will be another core focus area. Our partner, Sea Research Foundation, will support us in developing marine environment curriculum for students in Singapore and Southeast Asia. Contents of the tertiary school curriculum will be drawn from Sea Research Foundation’s Mystic Aquarium, distinguished for its marine animal education, research and husbandry expertise.
16. The Marine Life Fund holds testament to our commitment to marine conservation and research. Set up to fund marine conservation projects and to further marine conservation cause, the fund has supported several field conservation initiatives including WildAid’s Galapagos Forever Programme since November 2008. Read more at http://www.rwsentosa.com/language/en-US/Attractions/MarineLifePark/MarineLifeFund/SponsoredProject. As part of our conservation efforts, the Marine Life Park has in place a Marine Life Fund which consistently look out for worthwhile marine conservation partners and projects to promote education, conservation and research.
In April 2011, ACRES sent a letter of invitation to the RWS CSR team seeking support for their gala dinner in aid of building their Wildlife Veterinary Clinic at the ACRES Wildlife Rescue Centre. After reviewing the project, the funding was approved in view of the potential rescue work that can be done for animals, the funding was subsequently rejected by ACRES. Back in April 2008, RWS had also supported ACRES with a donation through their fund raising gala dinner in view of the work that they do for animals.
17. In 2007, we engaged marine biologists from appointed consultancy firm, DHI Water & Environment Singapore, to relocate corals and other marine life around Sentosa northern coastline which were affected by reclamation works.
18. We uphold a resort-wide policy where shark fin will not be on our menu.
19. The MLP is hiring over 500 team members for positions ranging from dive masters, life support engineers to lab technicians, lifeguards and guest services managers. Check out our career page at www.rwsentosa.com for openings.
20. Finally, we love all our fans!
We are excited about the Marine Life Park and hope to excite you too. We are bringing the world’s largest oceanarium to Singapore, and over the next few years, will be working very hard to make a difference in the global effort of marine conservation and research. Our dolphins, as with all the other marine animals in our care, deserve nothing less.