DAVID MARSHALL: THE BLUE REEF AQUARIUM PORTSMOUTH

Text and photographs by David Marshall

The Blue Reef Aquarium, Portsmouth is situated at Southsea and is set against a tranquil promenade, where you can walk for several miles without hardly coming across the ‘trappings and hard sell’ of most other U.K. sea-side towns.

The tranquillity of Southsea makes a perfect backdrop for a Blue Reef Aquarium.

The entrance to the Aquarium.

As you enter the Aquarium you are in a section called ‘Close Encounters’. At once you are face-to-face with the most incredible Triggerfish exhibit I have ever seen. Sharing this large opened topped exhibit are Bull-huss, Sea Bass and Bream. I stood here, transfixed, for ages. If you have never seen the incredible teeth of Triggerfish then stand here for a while and these ‘show offs’ will end their routine by letting you see their dentition to full effect.

The amazing Triggerfish exhibit.

A ‘close encounter with Triggerfish’ is something the Author will always remember.

Three small native marine displays follow before another spectacular display comes into view. Here you are looking into a large, and very deep, aquarium that is home to large tropical marine fish that include White-tipped Sharks, Stingrays and Panther Groupers. This sets the scene for a further eleven tropical marine displays. These vary in size and dimensions but what does not change is that they all hold wonderful displays of fish and/or invertebrates in the best of health. Sue and I loved the ‘World of iridescence’ and here the neon blue-green body colours of fish such as Blue Chromis and Sgt. Major fish glow in specially chosen lighting. The Nautilus look like remnants of a lost age and some fellow visitors were almost afraid of these creatures. These displays end with a small walk through ‘Sea of Cortez’ tunnel where Pork fish, Ramora, Lipstick Tang and a number of other species swim above and around your head.

The amazing ‘World of iridescence’ display.

One of a number of excellent tropical marine displays.

Tucked away amongst the above is a splendid brackish biotope aquarium with plants that trail from a wall into the water. Among mangrove roots, rocks and bogwood swim Scats, Anableps livebearers, Archerfish and Fingerfish. Stunning viewing!

Gigantic Mirror Carp

Turn a corner and you are into ‘Otter Holt’. The first display is a cylindrical aquarium that is home to a shoal of variously sized Red-bellied Piranha. ‘Wow’! was the spoken word as we found ourselves against a large indoor pond, fed by a fountain, that is home to ‘baby whale’ Mirror Carp and Sturgeon. To see this exhibit is worth the entry fee alone. This section ends, as the name suggests, with a family of very playful, and beautiful, Asian Short-clawed Otters.


Nile Monitor.


Although Buenos Aires Tetras and White Clouds share an aquarium with a large Snapping Turtle we are in a ‘fish void’ mini-zoo area known as ‘Weird and wonderful’. This section is home to displays of Green Iguana, Yellow Anaconda, Nile Monitor, various Frogs, Axolotls and Turtles.


Yellow Anaconda.

Finally, we find ourselves in the ‘Blue Reef Nursery’. Here are temporary exhibits of creatures bred at the Aquarium and others that are in quarantine before moving to permanent exhibits. At the time of our visit Common Clownfish were ‘stealing the show’ with their wonderful body colours.

If we forget the fact that some of the species information boards seem sparse in the information they relay to the visitor, then the Blue Reef Aquarium at Portsmouth is excellent. We found less native marine exhibits that we had expected but here they ‘push the boat out’ to display tropical marine creatures in all their glory. Sue liked the fact that from the moment you walk through the door you are met by friendly staff and that soothing, and very apt, music is played from the beginning to the end of your visit.

In conclusion this Public Aquarium is well worth a visit. You will find an excellent variety of aquatic creatures on display - all of which are in excellent health and are well cared for.