New England Aquarium

09/05/2026

Say hello to the Atlantic stingray! 👋

With their big eyes and heart-shaped bodies, these graceful swimmers are easy to spot as they glide through the water.

Atlantic rays are highly adaptable and can be found in tropical and warm-temperate waters, from Delaware Bay all the way down to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. They can even tolerate freshwater environments, including some rivers and lakes in Florida.

With excellent care from our staff, Atlantic rays can live for more than 15 years! Next time you're at the Aquarium, swing by our Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank to see the Atlantic rays.

09/05/2026

There's still time to explore Boston with your family and friends this summer! 😎

CityPASS lets you pick 4 of the city’s top spots, including the Aquarium, and save up to 45%! Whether you’re showing off Boston to visitors or planning a fun staycation, CityPASS makes it simple to see the best of the city with just one ticket.

🎟️ Check out all the details and see the full list of attractions here: https://bit.ly/3UoTxDH

09/04/2026

Meet the largest animal ever to live on our planet: the blue whale! 🐋

Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life aerial survey team had an incredible surprise during a recent survey of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument: a blue whale! This whale was seen just outside the Monument on their way to the survey area.

Spotting one of these endangered giants is always special; encounters like this are pretty rare!

So, what makes blue whales so incredible? Let’s dive into some fun facts:

• Blue whales can grow up to 100 feet long and weigh as much as 140 tons.

• Believe it or not, these gentle giants feed almost exclusively on tiny, shrimp-like animals called krill. Some of the largest individuals can eat up to 6 tons of krill in a single day!

• Blue whales are found in oceans around the world, except the Arctic Ocean. There are five recognized subspecies of blue whales, each adapted to different regions.

09/03/2026

Our larval fishes program started nearly two decades ago with just a handful of tiny fish eggs! Today, it’s a big part of our sustainable aquaculture work, and it’s helping aquariums around the world create amazing exhibits in new ways. 🐠

So, what exactly is sustainable aquaculture? It’s an important part of our conservation work, helping us make sure the fish you see here, and at other aquariums, are sourced in ways that are better for the planet. More than 70% of the fish in the Giant Ocean Tank were raised in-house by our aquarists!

It also gives us the opportunity to learn more about the species we care for, including how they breed, where they lay their eggs, and how their tiny larvae travel through the ocean. All of that knowledge helps us better understand, and ultimately protect, wild fish populations.

More: https://bit.ly/3Uafh6j

09/02/2026

🚨The U.S. House of Representatives has passed legislation that would further delay federal measures to reduce entanglement risks for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales and threaten the future of the species.

The Aquarium and Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life are urging against any additional action to advance H.R. 9436. The Aquarium believes safeguarding right whales and supporting fisheries are complementary goals, and continued collaboration can balance fishers’ needs with the actions needed to prevent this species from further decline and extinction.

Read our full statement from the Aquarium's Chief of Conservation and Stewardship, Dr. Letise LaFeir: https://bit.ly/4zQpYez

📸: NEAq under DFO SARA permit

08/31/2026

Just some pics of Thomas looking majestic in the Giant Ocean Tank 💚

Some quick, fun facts about Thomas:

🐍 Thomas is a green moray eel, but despite his name, he’s actually more brownish-yellow than green!

👀 He has a second set of jaws called pharyngeal jaws that help him pull food into his throat. Pretty metal, Thomas.

💨 Thomas breathes by constantly opening and closing his mouth to move water over his gills.

💚 And perhaps the most important fact of all: Thomas is very, very loved. Our staff, volunteers, and visitors have gotten to know his unique personality over the years, and he’s become a true Giant Ocean Tank favorite!

08/30/2026

Is it shark fact or fiction? 🦈

Sharks always seem to spark our curiosity! With shark sightings in the news and sharks making waves in pop culture, it’s not always easy to know what’s fact and what’s just a fishy story.

That’s where shark biologist Ryan comes in! Ryan is a research scientist at the Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life. He has loved sharks his whole life, so he knows just how fascinating they are. He’s helped us break down some of our favorite shark facts and myths, from how to spot a great white to whether we’re actually seeing more sharks than ever before.

Read Ryan’s full article in Worcester Magazine’s Woo! Science series to get the facts behind some of the most common shark myths: https://bit.ly/4xcgmcm

Shark Week is a time celebrate all things shark. At New England Aquarium, it's a time to showcase a creature that swims in folklore as well as fact.

08/29/2026

27 years of Mystic, the cownose ray! 🥳

Mystic is a cownose ray who lives full-time at our Quincy Animal Care Center. She has been at the Aquarium since 2008, and spent many years in the Giant Ocean Tank before moving to Quincy for her much-deserved retirement.

For her birthday, our Quincy staff presented Mystic with a tasty cake made of fish and shrimp that she seemed to thoroughly enjoy!

Cownose rays usually live about 18–20 years in the wild, so hitting 27 is a huge milestone. Here’s to many more happy, healthy years, Mystic! 💛

08/28/2026

Scenes from our latest right whale research cruise in the Gulf of St. Lawrence! 🐋💙

Earlier this month, researchers from the Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life and the Canadian Whale Institute were aboard the 65-foot Jean-Denis Martin, a chartered crab vessel, for their third research cruise in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. This was the final leg of our joint summer research trips!

The larger vessel allowed the team to venture farther offshore and stay out overnight, helping them cover more ground as they searched for North Atlantic right whales. They spotted many right whales (including two mother-calf pairs!) as well as several leatherback sea turtles and seabirds.

The team photographed and identified individual whales, captured aerial footage with drones, and collected blow samples and oceanographic data, all of which provide valuable information for ongoing research.

Another successful research cruise in the books! 🔬🐋

📸 1-3: NEAq
📸 3-7: Canadian Whale Institute

📌 All research and photos collected under DFO Canada SARA permit. This research is done in collaboration with the Canadian Whale Institute and is made possible thanks to the generosity and support of our partners Irving Oil and the Island Foundation.

08/27/2026

Come with us to a training session for our leopard whiptail rays!

Hannah, a senior aquarist on our Interactive Exhibits team, takes us right into the Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank for a special training session.

We have two leopard whiptail rays in this exhibit, and because they’re the largest animals in the tank, they need a little extra food to stay healthy and strong. Training helps our aquarists make sure they’re getting the nutrition they need, while also helping the rays get comfortable working with us.