An Egg-static Mother’s Day Update From The Aquarium

Just in time for Mother’s Day, a wave of egg discoveries and recent hatchings has been making the Tennessee Aquarium’s River Journey building feel more like a nursery.

The Aquarium’s education department is home to eight New Caledonian Giant Geckos, including one male and seven females — four of which were hatched and raised in-house. Beginning in March, these females have laid 13 eggs, nine of which animal care specialists think will be viable.

What’s unusual, however, is that several of these eggs came from female geckos that have not mated in quite some time. In a neat bit of biological trickery, New Caledonian Giant Geckos are one of several animal species whose females can “hoard” sperm if conditions for reproducing aren’t ideal.

“One of the most recent geckos we hatched was from a female that hadn’t been with a male in over a year,” said Animal Care Specialist II Jennifer Wawra.

Husbandry staff aren’t counting any of these eggs before they hatch, but based on the incubation period for these sandy reptiles, two- to three-inch babies could begin emerging as early as June.

The Aquarium is home to North America’s largest exhibition of freshwater turtles, and if recently discovered clutches of eggs are any indication, that collection could grow even more in the coming weeks and months.

In April, Senior Herpetologist Bill Hughes heard reports of an egg seen sitting in the middle of the Fly River exhibit. A quick excavation revealed that the Red-bellied Short-necked Turtles had laid not one but three separate nests containing more than two dozen eggs. After being relocated to gravel-filled trays to keep them immobile, the eggs were transferred to the Aquarium’s off-exhibit incubator. If viable, they will begin hatching in 65-75 days.

Not all of the eggs at the Aquarium were laid here.

On April 13, a clutch of wild-collected Pharaoh Cuttlefish eggs came to the Aquarium. This cephalopod species is commonly raised in-house by aquariums around the world, but frequent sharing between institutions has lowered the genetic diversity of the cuttlefish in human care.

“It’s a common species that’s exhibited and fairly easily cultured in-house, so you don’t have to get eggs from the wild,” says Aquarist II Rachel Thayer. “The trick is, though, that after several generations, you need an influx of wild individuals to ensure the populations in human care are robust and healthy.”

When they hatch in the coming weeks, the baby Pharaoh Cuttlefish will ensure future generations are genetically diverse and minimize the impact on wild cuttlefish in the future. Guests exploring as part of a Backstage Pass Tour can visit the Aquarium’s quarantine room, where these eggs will remain for the months until they’re large enough to exhibit. 

A few of the eggs represent not only an impending wave of baby animal cuteness but also improved hopes for an imperiled species.

For more than 20 years, the Aquarium has propagated the endangered Barrens Topminnow. Thanks to the negative impact of human activity, the wild population of this tiny fish is now limited to just a handful of streams in Middle Tennessee.

Recently, however, newly hatched Barrens Topminnows fry were spotted in the Aquarium’s Tiny, But Mighty Important Exhibit. Hatched on exhibit by adults used for breeding stock, these nearly microscopic baby fish measure less than an half an inch in length and will top out at just three inches when they reach adult size.

For the next month or so, the baby Barrens will remain on view in the exhibit before being relocated to the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute. There they will continue to grow and, eventually, contribute to the propagation efforts that are helping to shore up the species’ remaining wild populations.

With Mother’s Day fast approaching, a new special offer will let moms and kids enjoy the Aquarium’s recent baby boom while also taking in a giant-screen film featuring some adorable animal newborns. Through Sunday, May 13, the purchase of a gift membership to the Aquarium — whether online, onsite or by phone — will be bundled with a free ticket to see The Wild Around You 3D at the IMAX 3D Theater.

This movie employs a suite of novel filmmaking techniques to capture amazing behavior by animals living in and around a suburban family. Among the film’s most memorable moments are striking shots of Wood Duck ducklings making a daredevil freefall from their treetop nests and larval Spotted Salamanders emerging from eggs laid in temporary forest pools.

The movie bundle offer also applies to individual plus gift memberships (which includes two IMAX tickets) and family/deluxe gift memberships (which includes four IMAX tickets). The tickets are good for one year and will be mailed out with the membership gift certificate.

For more information or to purchase a gift membership, visit tnaqua.org/members/gift-membership.