Coastal Waters

The “At the Jetty” exhibit spotlights survival issues of coho and chinook salmon, explaining their life cycle and their tremendous journey from streams to the ocean and back again. Extending into the Aquarium's courtyard with a large wall-to-wall viewing window, the 35,000-gallon exhibit is one of the Aquarium's larger indoor displays.

Made up of impressive basalt boulders, the exhibit replicates the habitat of the Yaquina Bay jetties, between which salmon must pass on their annual migrations. Large white sturgeons are also featured. Considered ancient fish, sturgeons have been around for some 200 million years. They can live as long as 100 years and can reach lengths of 20 feet. Aquarium visitors enjoy watching these gentle giants poke around the sandy bottom in search of food. The “At the Jetty” exhibit was made possible through the generous support of Spirit Mountain Community Fund and the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde.

Coastal Waters also houses a moon jelly exhibit, which occupies an acrylic cylinder eight feet in diameter. The jellies are consistently named by visitors as one of the most popular animals at the Aquarium. A second jelly exhibit in this gallery features sea nettles. Other highlights include a 5,000-gallon kelp forest harboring offshore fishes and invertebrates and a 9,100-gallon coastal reef exhibit. The gallery holds a total of 16 exhibits.

What Lives Here

  • Bat Star

    Bat Star

    Bat Stars have short, triangular arms, usually five in number but sometimes four to nine. Their color is extremely variable, but most are red or deep orange. Bat... more

  • Blacksmith

    Blacksmith

    The Blacksmith is a small, thick-bodied fish common to the Eastern Pacific, especially off the coast of California. Blacksmiths can be identified by their blue-bl... more

  • Blood Star

    Blood Star

    Blood stars are the most brightly colored sea stars in the intertidal zone. They are usually brilliant red or reddish-orange with a texture that feels similar to ... more

  • Boccacio

    Boccacio

    Bocaccio are elongated fish with large mouths and few or no spines on their head. They tend to be brown or reddish-brown on the back, pink or brown on the sides a... more

  • California Moray Eel

    California Moray Eel

    The morays comprise about 120 species, all living in the tropical and subtropical seas. They usually grow to be about three feet long, with the largest moray (whi... more

  • Chinook Salmon

    Chinook Salmon

    Chinook salmon is the official fish of Oregon and is well-known due to the important role they play in the state’s economy and history. Even Meriwether Lewis and... more

  • Filetail Catshark

    Filetail Catshark

    This small (usually less than 2 feet or 55 cm in length) sleek-looking fish is related to larger sharks and rays. Catsharks get their name from the way their eyes... more

  • Garibaldi Damselfish

    Garibaldi Damselfish

    This beautiful fish is named after Giuseppe Garibaldi, a Nineteenth century Italian revolutionary who, along with his followers, was famous for wearing a bright r... more

  • Horn Shark

    Horn Shark

    Horn Sharks are a small species related to the larger and more aggressive Bull Shark. A typical specimen rarely exceeds 3 feet (1 meter) in length and is generall... more

  • Japanese Spider Crab

    Japanese Spider Crab

    As the name may suggest, the Japanese Spider Crab is not a native to Oregon coastal waters but rather lives at the western end of the Pacific Ocean. The crab was ... more

  • Leaf Barnacle

    Leaf Barnacle

    The Leaf Barnacle is identifiable from other members of its species because the capitulum (top of the stalk) is covered with at least five cream-colored plates an... more

  • Leather Star

    Leather Star

    Leather stars usually have five wide arms surrounding a large, high disc. Their upper surface is blue-gray, mottled with red and orange. The star’s texture is smo... more

  • Pacific Hagfish

    Pacific Hagfish

    Hagfish have elongated, eel-like bodies, and paddle-like tails. They have cartilaginous skulls and tooth-like structures composed of keratin. Colors depend on the... more

  • Pacific Sea Nettle

    Pacific Sea Nettle

    When you visit our Coastal Waters exhibit, you may have to wait a moment or two to get close to the Sea Nettle display. Perhaps one of the most popular habitats i... more

  • Moon Jellyfish

    Moon Jellyfish

    At first glance, jellyfish may be so alien-looking to the human eye that it is hard for us to even think of them as animals. Jellyfish (or "jellies" for ... more

  • Red Sea Urchin

    Red Sea Urchin

    Red Sea Urchins can range in color from pink to deep red to purple. These large urchins have long, straight, smooth spines. They eat a variety of brown and red a... more

  • Proliferating Anemone

    Proliferating Anemone

    The Proliferating Anemone has a short body with radiating white lines on the oral disc and longitudinal grooves on the column. The base is usually larger in diame... more

  • Senorita

    Senorita

    Senoritas are beautiful, cigar-shaped fish common offshore to California. Although they do not occur in Oregon waters, they can be seen in the California Kelp Fo... more

  • Spot Prawn

    Spot Prawn

    There are thousands of shrimp species worldwide. Most of them are marine and live close to the bottom or swim in midwater regions of the ocean. Some species live ... more

  • Spotted Ratfish

    Spotted Ratfish

    Spotted Ratfish are a cartilaginous fish distantly related to sharks. This is probably one of the most visually striking fish at the Aquarium. It has a long, scal... more

  • Sunflower Star

    Sunflower Star

    The Sunflower Star is related to sea stars, sea urchins and sand dollars. This unusual animal begins life with five or six arms and adds more (up to 24) with age.... more

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