Dugongs
This big, gentle mammalian herbivore may not at first glance look much like the mermaids you might have read about in myths and legends.
Dugongs
*UPDATE - May 3rd 2012*
Please note that as of February 3 2012, the dugongs will be temporarily off display - but they won't be gone for long!
We're building a new home for our dugongs, Pig and Wuru, as we work towards the launch of the new SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium in September 2012! Dugongs don't like disruption, so for their own welfare, they've moved somewhere quieter while work is in progress, and will be back soon.
Meanwhile their neighbours, the fearsome looking Grey Nurse Sharks, Lemon Sharks and Smooth Rays have moved into their hood, while their Oceanarium is also being upgraded - so come and check out all the big sharks on show!
About our dugongs...
It's thought that the legend of dugongs belonging to the Sirenia (the Greek word for mermaid) originated from delirious sailors who mistook the animals for seductive fishy tailed females after too long out on the ocean.
The common name, dugong, comes from a Malay word meaning 'lady of the sea'. In fact, dugongs are most closely related not to any other sea creature, but to elephants.
In the wild, dugongs mainly live in the warm shallow coastal waters of northern Australia, but occasionally stray further south. Dugongs generally have a similar lifespan to humans and the oldest recorded dugong lived to 73 years old.
Pig (that's the boy) and Wuru (that's the girl) are both rescued orphaned dugongs from Queensland and were raised from calves to youngsters at Sea World on the Gold Coast. They have been living in Mermaid Lagoon since late 2008 and, like all dugongs, Pig and Wuru need a lot of looking after. They are social, friendly animals who not only need to be fed a lot, but also enjoy playing games and having their backs scratched.
Pig and Wuru are big eaters, and feed pretty much constantly from 8am to 9pm every day. In the wild, dugongs eat huge amounts of seagrass, and the closest match to that at Sydney Aquarium is lettuce, especially cos. Pig and Wuru are love cos, and eat about 45kg each every day, with occasional side treats of bok choy and spinach. The cos is washed and threaded into special weighted racks, which sit on the bottom of the dugongs' lagoon, enabling them to graze as they would in the wild.
Australia has the world's largest dugong population, with 100,000 of the sea creatures estimated to be living in the waters of northern Australia and the Torres Strait. But the population is still under threat, most of which is from habitat loss due to coastal development and boat traffic - in some areas of southern Queensland waters, numbers have decreased by around 90 per cent in recent years. As female dugongs may not reach maturity till they're 10-17 years of age, and only give birth every three to seven years, population numbers can be slow to recover. It's not known yet whether a breeding program in captivity may be possible. Let's hope so.
