One good thing about the subtropical hot desert environment is there are no sharknados. There will likely never be a sharknado in Las Vegas, but if one does occur Shark Reef Aquarium is designed and built to withstand the wind-and-fin phenomenon. Visitors can be secure in the knowledge they will be safely separated from the sharks by tempered glass regardless of what’s happening in the world outside of Mandalay Bay’s animal realm.
The environment inside Shark Reef seems like a world unto its own, a sort of cross between Indiana Jones archeology adventure and Jules Verne beneath-the-sea scenery. There is a jungle with ruins to cross through before shark-sighting, with a tropical scent being the first indication upon entry that climate change is ahead.
There are a few hazards. One must evade a pool populated with piranha, a Burmese python that gives lethal hugs and a Komodo Dragon that looks cute but is an apex predator that would not work very well as a support animal. The king of this jungle is a deceptively chill Johnson’s crocodile with an Ancient Sunken Temple for a castle. Its preferred method of capturing prey involves clamping down with its 70 teeth and drowning dinner before commencing consumption.
Photo by: Bryan Steffy
As long as visitors remain well-behaved, there is little chance of becoming a meal for Shark Reef’s inhabitants. There are no boundaries for imaginations, though, so creating a scenario in which there are relics to hunt for is perfectly appropriate. Once the man-eating hazards are circumvented, there are more bucolic species to see. Placards provide fast facts about French angelfish, queen triggerfish and parrotfish in a learning experience that accompanies the length of the trek.
The most photographable scene on the premises is the shark tube, a walk-through, transparent tunnel that gives an indication of how much water and space it takes to provide homes for hammerhead sharks far from the ocean. It’s less complicated to provide an abode for stingrays, and far less dangerous to touch a stingray than a hammerhead shark, so the rays reside in a touch pool.
It’s also not as hazardous to feed a stingray, so Shark Reef provides a Stingray Feed experience before the aquarium opens. The feeds are popular so booking several weeks in advance ensures exclusive touch pool time during the daily 9:15 a.m. feeding along with a guided tour of Shark Reef’s exhibits.
The zebra sharks are available for feeding sessions alongside Shark Reef’s animal experts who enlighten guests as they participate in satiating appetites.
It’s better for civilians to watch profs feed the larger sharks in the 1.3-million-gallon aquarium than risk possibly becoming lunch. The main viewing area where the sharks circle a sunken wreck is as close as anyone really needs to be to ocean predators, although jellyfish swimming in their own spaces are more mesmerizing. Shark Reef Aquarium may be the best way to get up close and personal with white sharks without being carried away by a teeth-filled twister.
Mandalay Bay, 702.632.4555
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