Having a Gourd Time
Underwater Pumpkin GLOW
Now through Nov. 3.
Newport Aquarium
1 Aquarium Way, Newport
Visit NewportAquarium.com for daily hours.
The experience is included with General Admission or Membership.
There’s something in the water.
It’s the new Fall experience at Newport Aquarium – Underwater Pumpkin GLOW!
This immersive adventure casts the aquarium in a new light with larger-than-life sculptures of beloved aquatic animals, all made from pumpkins. Taking center stage is a 13-foot-tall sculpture of a giant Pacific octopus made entirely out of pumpkins and illuminated underwater.
Submerged in the 385,000-gallon shark tank – the giant Pacific octopus is so large and bright that it will be visible from multiple vantage points throughout the aquarium. Visitors will be able to gaze upon the huge octopus from Shark Ray Bay Theater and from the Surrounded by Sharks Tunnel as fish, sharks and rays explore the new addition. The illuminated octopus can also be seen from above the shark tank as explorers cross Shark Bridge – suspended just a few inches above the water’s surface. You’ll be awestruck by the detail and sheer size of the sculpture as sharks and fish swim among its giant arms.
The glowing pumpkins are not just decorations for the exhibits, they also serve as a form of enrichment for the animals. Entering the Surrounded by Sharks Tunnel, visitors will find themselves in the middle of an underwater pumpkin patch. The pumpkins become an artificial reef for the fish where they shelter and search for food, just like they would on a coral reef. The animals will also receive seasonal fall treats as divers carve pumpkins underwater with the bits of food fueling a feeding frenzy.
The experience brings visitors face to face with several animals reimagined as giant glowing sculptures made from pumpkins – including Denver, the aquarium’s popular loggerhead sea turtle. The smiling sea turtle can be found glowing in the center of the aquarium’s newest exhibit, Ring of Fire: World of the Octopus. Nearby in Stingray Hideaway, a giant stingray sculpted from pumpkins can be seen leaping out of the water to greet each visitor as they touch real stingrays swimming by.
The Seahorses gallery will welcome a towering structure of eel grass supporting giant, glowing seahorses made from pumpkins. Visitors will take in the fall atmosphere in the space complete with a projected, glowing forest of sea grass and a custom soundtrack – all while observing the antics of real seahorses. Shark Central will feature a blinking frog, made out of pumpkins, calmly floating on its lily pad above a tank full of sharks.