Immerse yourself in an exciting underwater learning adventure when you come nose-to-nose with six-foot sharks, swim with the turtles and rays, and catch an eel slither by you. Underwater viewing windows at the Shark Reef give visitors a close-up look at a variety of species in a colorful reef exhibit.

Most of the fish in the reef are predators, and they come in various shapes and sizes. The sharks and rays are cartilaginous fish. Their skeletons are made up completely of cartilage, no bones. This gives them flexibility and makes them lighter.

There are more than 350 species of sharks in the world, but most are harmless to humans. More than half of all the species are less than three feet in length.

Southern stingrays are cousins of sharks, they look like flattened sharks that have adapted to ocean life in a different way. Rays use their fins like modified wings to glide through the water and along the ocean bottom. They also use their wings to dislodge crustaceans and mussels from the sandy ocean floor and eat them. Discovery Bay: United HealthCare Marine Education Center, opened in June, 1997, introduces visitors to ocean habitats and demonstrates the importance of helping to protect of the world's oceans.

In addition to the Shark Reef, Discovery Bay also includes Clubhouse Cove, a hands-on, interactive interpretive center; an Estuary, where visitors can touch small sharks and rays; the Tide Pool, habitat for sea stars, sea anemone, sea urchins and more; and Dolphin Lagoon, home to the Zoo's Atlantic bottlenose dolphins and an 800-seat indoor amphitheater.