The green mantella, which measures just three centimetres in length, is found only in Madagascar and is at serious risk of extinction due to severe habitat loss. 

The species was only identified in 1988 from specimens discovered in the far northern tip of the island country in the Indian Ocean.

The 19 babies were captive bred at Paignton Zoo and are from their Amphibian Ark – species rescue and re-introduction centre.

Green mantellas usually live amongst the leaf litter on the forest floor. Although they can climb, they are almost always found on the ground.

This is also where they lay their eggs in clutches of up to 60 eggs, in tree holes or under wet moss. The tadpoles hatch after a few days and are then washed into nearby streams where they will take up to two months to turn in to froglets.

Deep Sea World’s Michael Morris said: “We have had a lot of success breeding a close relative of this particular species of frog so we’re hopeful that, once mature, we will also be able to help safeguard the green mantella from the threat of extinction.

“It is a big responsibility to be given the chance to look after such an endangered species and also provides a graphic illustration of the vital work that animal collections worldwide are doing to help protect and conserve endangered species,” he added.

Endangered is a risk category assigned by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List for wild species. Endangered means that the species faces a very high risk of extinction in the near future.

The tiny Cuvier’s dwarf caiman currently measures only about 30cms in length but will eventually grow up to six times longer.

Nicknamed Fawkes as he was born close to Bonfire Night last November, he was the first caiman to have been successfully bred at the Blue Planet Aquarium.

He is currently being looked after in the quarantine area of Deep Sea World and can be seen as part of our new Access All Areas tours.

Longer term the plan is for Fawkes to go on public display in a new exhibit later this year.

Deep Sea World’s Michael Morris said: “Although he is still only small Fawkes can be quite a handful and you still have to be careful as he has razor-sharp teeth.

“It’s fantastic that he is part of an ongoing captive breeding programme for the species and we’re delighted to be able to look after him here at Deep Sea World,” he added.

The Cuvier’s dwarf caiman is the smallest surviving member of the crocodilian family found in the Americas. Fully grown adult males reach up to 1.6 metres in length.

They are found throughout South America and live in freshwater habitats like rivers, including the Amazon, flooded forests and larger lakes.

The caimans are covered with extremely tough, bony armour plates. This may be to make up for their relatively small size and protect them from attacks by larger predators.

In the wild the caiman build nests out of rotting vegetation. The heat generated by the decomposing plant matter helps to keep the eggs warm.

Although accurate records of their longevity are sparse it is thought some individuals can live for 40 years or more.

Due to their relatively small size and the toughness of their skin the Cuvier’s dwarf caiman is not hunted commercially and their numbers in the wild are believed to be stable.

However the main threat to their survival comes from habitat destruction and pollution through gold mining and other industrial activities.

Deep Sea World’s Aisling Thornton said: “Our team of experienced tour guides take you behind the scenes to otherwise prohibited areas and show you how we care for our extensive collection of aquatic life. “You’ll learn all about what we feed our animals, see how we test our water, visit our training and quarantine areas and even take a peek in to our shark-infested 4.5 million litre Underwater Safari! “We’ve only been promoting the tours for a few weeks now but they are already attracting lots of interest from visitors who want to gain a unique insight in to what goes on behind the scenes,” she added.

The tours provide an opportunity to see first-hand how a modern aquarium operates; from feed preparation for a huge range of aquatic creatures including crabs and lobsters to sharks and seahorses to maintaining millions of litres of seawater in perfect condition. There will also be a chance to see various pieces of high-tech diving gear used by the aquarium’s team of divers. The highlight of the tours is the opportunity to gain a unique bird’s eye view of the aquarium’s massive Underwater Safari display – home to one of Europe’s largest collection of sand tiger sharks and stingrays. Tours cost just £3 per person, last 30 minutes, with a maximum group size of 12, and take place on Saturdays & Sundays and every day throughout the School Holidays (Min. height restriction 90cms).

The Fife-based acrobatic dance group have made it through to the semi-finals of Sky1 show Got to Dance, which takes place live on Sunday in London. 

Members of the group visited the North Queensferry aquarium’s underwater tunnel to watch the divers attempt their own underwater dance routine under the watchful eye of the aquarium’s three-metre-long sand tiger sharks.

The event was to help raise awareness and support for the group ahead of the live dance off on Sunday and members were also out and about in Fife visiting schools and doing demonstrations.

Deep Sea World’s Chris Smith said: “We’re all very much behind Evolution and wish them the very best of luck for Sunday. We wanted to show our support by trying out our own routine underwater.

“We may not have entirely nailed all the moves in the water but it was great to have so many of the group down here to visit and join in the fun,” he added.

Gymtasia Evolution is a 15 strong squad featuring 14 girls and one male, aged between 10 and 30, and all from Dunfermline and the surrounding area. 

Led by coach and choreographer Suzanne Fraser, Gymtasia Evolution is based at Dalgety Bay Leisure Centre.

“We are very excited about our success so far, and to receive such glowing comments from the judges has really confirmed for us that we are going in the right direction and that we have an exceptionally talented group of people in our squad,” said Suzanne.

“Our squad members have been practising for 15 hours a week, balancing school and work, and club competition preparation with dance – I really admire them for their dedication,” she added.

· The live semi-final of Got to Dance will be on Sky 1 at 6pm on Sunday, March 10^th.

Keepers discovered Heather the harbour seal playing with the tiny bath toy on February 14^th and believe it may have been left by a visitor as a token of affection.

The duck, which is covered in heart shapes, has proved to be an unexpected hit with the 12-year-old seal who plays with it constantly.

Deep Sea World’s Charli Reddish said: “At first we assumed the duck had been accidentally dropped by a member of the public, but now we’re beginning to think it may have been intended as a gift for Heather.

“Obviously we would strongly urge people not to leave toys or gifts for any of our residents here at the aquarium as they could pose a potential health risk.

“However in this particular instance it would appear that Heather has really taken a shine to her new companion and the pair are pretty much inseparable.

“She nudges him around in the water and will even place him on her nose at feeding time in the hope it will result in her getting some extra fish!” she added.

Harbour seals usually live on and around sheltered stretches of coast where they can often be seen on mudflats or sandbanks.

Reaching length of up to two metres harbour seals are considerably smaller than their grey cousins.

Harbour seals come ashore in sheltered waters typically on sandbanks and in estuaries but also in rocky areas. They give birth to their pups in June and July and moult in August.

The Sea of Love event on Thursday, February 14^th will see the North Queensferry attraction staying open until 8pm with extra talks providing a saucy insight into the private lives of aquatic creatures including sharks, seahorses and even piranhas!

Running throughout the evening, the event will highlight the aquarium’s romantic hot-spots and includes up-close encounters with a variety of its amorous inhabitants.

Deep Sea World’s Aisling Thornton said: “The aquarium is a very romantic location. In the past we have had more than a dozen marriage proposals happen among the displays, the most recent one was only last month, and it’s also a popular destination for couples on their first date.

“The marine environment is a passionate place – it may look tranquil but it’s really a highly-charged world of strong emotions.

“The Valentine’s event will give a fascinating insight into the different methods aquatic creatures employ to woo and win their partners,” she added.

Public aquariums regularly crop up as the top choice for courting couples; apparently they’re seen as being less intimidating than taking someone out to dinner and allow for more conversation than a trip to the local cinema.

According to Marie Claire magazine: ‘No place exudes romance more than an aquarium. Stroll through the hushed, darkened rooms, pointing out your favourite creatures, and he’ll notice how beautiful you look, illuminated by the glow of fish tanks.’

As well as late-night opening for Valentine’s Day, Deep Sea World is also planning to run special Twilight Toursweekend events with the aquarium staying open until 7pm. The first will take place this weekend (Feb 9^th-10^th) with a second planned for February 16^th-17^th.

The events will provide visitors with a fascinating, and possibly scary, opportunity to see what the aquarium’s fishy residents do after dark.Guides will use special torches with a red filter to enable visitors to observe the animals without disturbing them.

It is important to keep both of our seals active and thinking and we have a number of ways to do this.  We have a ‘playtime’ session every day, when toys are given to the seals and they are left to play with them. The toys usually contain some sort of fishy reward to encourage interaction with them, and you can read more about this type of interaction in Kev’s “What is Enrichment?” blog entry.  We also have our main seal feed, which happens every day at 14:30, during which we ask our seals to show off to the public by performing several different exercises designed to work their muscles and keep them entertained and thinking, and then we also have a short session in which we work with our seals to develop their skills.

The seals are very smart animals and can pick up a new skill within a few weeks if they are motivated.  With Morag the first challenge was to motivate her.  We discovered that enthusiastic chatting; plenty of fish and very simple tasks was the answer to adding a little change in her behaviour during the feed.  In a few short weeks we went from it being difficult to persuade her to come out of the water for the main feed to her sliding up onto the beach in excitement every time she saw someone carrying a bucket heading into the sanctuary.  Morag’s favourite fish is herring, so we made sure she was getting plenty of that in reward for completing the tasks we had asked her to do and she responded by doing more and more each time we held a session.

Once Morag was happily coming up onto the beach and following us around targeting her pole we thought it was time to add a little bit more complexity.  We decided that it would be a big achievement for both her and for us to work towards getting her to jump the same way that her daughter Heather can jump: to touch a ball held out over the water.  To learn this skill, Morag would also have to learn other valuable skills such as entering and exiting the water by command.  Due to her age, Morag finds it a little difficult to see sometimes, particularly on bright days, so we knew that we would have to find ways to overcome some challenges caused by this.

The first thing we did was get her to understand that when the target was held above her head she had to stretch to reach it.  Morag can be a little lazy sometimes, and prefers to twist her body into all sorts of pretzel shapes to reach her target instead of actually moving, so it was important to make sure we were only rewarding her for the behaviours that we wanted her to do, not the easier behaviours she wanted to do.  Eventually we could raise the target up above her so that she had to stretch and lift her flippers of the floor to reach it.  You can still see us doing this with her on the beach during the feeds to try and stretch the muscles that she will need to jump.

When Morag was consistently lifting her flippers of the floor each time to reach it, it was time to take her in the water.  She started off reaching a high target in very shallow water and we gradually got deeper and deeper.  We have begun to incorporate it into her daily feed so that she can build up the muscles to jump higher and higher.  She has started entering the water and swimming over to the place where she jumps on command, which is brilliant, and we will continue to work with her and develop the jumping technique to suit her. To see Morag’s new jump, come along to Deep Sea World for the seal feed at 14:30 every day and help us track her progress.

Charli Reddish, Aquarist

Pictures: take pictures of the different steps to train Morag

The babies, which were born at the North Queensferry attraction, back in December last year have been cared for behind the scenes in the aquarium’s quarantine area.

However the youngsters have now reached a stage when they are big enough to fend for themselves and have been moved to their own tank.

The babies are members of what’s thought to be the largest species of seahorse in the world – the Australian big-belly – which can reach up to 20cms in length.

Their parents, who were also part of a breeding programme, arrived at the aquarium back in 2011.

Deep Sea World’s Aisling Thornton said: “Seahorses are among our most popular residents and it is fantastic that our big bellies have started to produce babies of their own.

“For these individuals to have reached this stage is a real tribute to the care and expertise of our aquarists and it’s wonderful for us to be welcoming a whole new generation of captive-bred seahorses,” she added.

The seahorse is unique in the animal kingdom in that it is the male rather than the female which carries the babies and gives birth to them via a special brood pouch on their stomach.

In the wild virtually all of the approximate 35 species of seahorse are now under threat from a variety of sources. These include loss of habitat, pollution, the souvenir trade and traditional Far East medicine – believed to account for the deaths of more than 20 million seahorses annually.

The big-bellied seahorses at Deep Sea World are part of a captive-breeding programme which aims to ease the pressure on wild populations.

Schoolchildren from Alexander Peden Primary School in Harthill  were invited to the North Queensferry aquarium to try out their education packs and provide their own feedback.

The new educational packages have been created with the assistance of teachers to include strong ties to Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence.

Deep Sea World’s Aisling Thornton said: “We wanted to give the new sessions the ultimate test. We’ve worked closely with teachers to try and ensure they provide a valuable and relevant set of resources.

“However there can be no better, or more severe, judges than the children themselves so we decided to invite a group of them down to give us their verdict.

“We’re really pleased with the feedback we got from both the pupils and their teachers – everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy their day out and the packs went down really well,” she added.

The aquarium, which celebrates its 20^th birthday this year, has put together five new educational classes, which have all been specifically tailored to fit Curriculum for Excellence’s four main criteria.

Located beneath the world-famous Forth Rail Bridge, Deep Sea World is Scotland’s national aquarium.

With more than 40 naturally-themed displays home to over 2,000 creatures – ranging from seals and seahorses to stingrays and sharks – the aquarium provides an incredible voyage of discovery through the planet’s rivers, lakes and oceans.

At the aquarium’s heart is the incredible 4.5 million litre Underwater Safari home to one of Europe’s largest collections of sharks – including three-metre-long sand tiger sharks – as well as hundreds of other fascinating marine life like rays, crabs and lobsters.

Pirates and Princesses Week features storytelling sessions where you can learn all about some real life pirates, pirate games including tug-o-war and walk the plank and lots more swashbuckling fun.

Staff are busy putting the finishing touches to their own pirates’ and princesses costumes and any children who arrive in full pirate or princess fancy dress will be allowed admission for free when accompanied by a full-paying adult.

Other activities taking place throughout the week include a competition for the best fancy dress costumes, a ‘Pirate Pete’ hunt around the aquarium with prizes and the chance to find out about some real life pirates.

Deep Sea World’s Aisling Thornton said: “This is always one of the most popular events that we hold here at the aquarium – particularly with our younger visitors but also among the staff!

“For most people the prospect of having to dress up would fill them with dread but our staff can’t wait to get out of their uniforms and into their costumes – they look forward to it all year round,” she added.

Located beneath the world-famous Forth Rail Bridge, Deep Sea World is Scotland’s national aquarium.

With more than 40 naturally-themed displays home to over 2,000 creatures – ranging from seals and seahorses to stingrays and sharks – the aquarium provides an incredible voyage of discovery through the planet’s rivers, lakes and oceans.

At the aquarium’s heart is the incredible 4.5 million litre Underwater Safari home to one of Europe’s largest collections of sharks – including three-metre-long sand tiger sharks – as well as hundreds of other fascinating marine life like rays, crabs and lobsters.

Don’t miss the outdoor seal sanctuary – home to a resident family of common seals and the new display featuring the aquarium’s captive bred angel sharks – which are critically endangered in the wild.

KIDS IN FANCY DRESS GO FREE – A child who arrives in full pirate or princess fancy dress during Pirates and Princesses Week (Feb 8^th-17^th inc.) will be allowed in for FREE when accompanied by one full-paying adult*

* Not valid with any other offer or family ticket.

• Deep Sea World, North Queensferry, Fife. Open daily from 10am. Visit www.deepseaworld.com for more information.