Clearwater aquarium first to join new online zoo showcase

The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is the first aquarium to join a new online animal showcase of zoos around the world called Zoolife.

The Zoolife website said the list is growing but its current partners include the Toronto Zoo, the Lincoln Park Zoo, the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary in Australia, the Orana Wildlife Park in New Zealand, the Northumberland Zoo in England, an unnamed butterfly sanctuary and the Phoenix Herpetological Sanctuary, among others.

The Clearwater aquarium is the only aquarium among its partners, and the first facility to showcase dolphins. The Clearwater facility, made famous in the hit movie “Dolphin Tale,” already has its own webcams, but they said the partnership offers a lot more.

“The Zoolife webcams provide the opportunity for much more interaction, the ability to zoom the camera, and it will have special events such as feedings, talks from animal handlers, as well as insights from the field, such as rescues of animals,” said aquarium spokesperson Marsha Strickhouser.

In addition, new content is added every month to feature the Clearwater aquarium’s research from work in the field and talks from the animal care team.

The Zoolife website currently offers free access to a single Zoolife habitat. It costs $9.99 for a monthly pass and $59.99 for a year.

Its hook is that it bring animals to viewers 24 hours a day.

Unlike individual webcams at zoos or other animal facilities, Zoolife gives access to over a dozen zoos, with a variety of animal habitats from each location. Visitors can choose a species to watch such as capybaras, penguins, gorillas, meerkats, koalas, otters, platypuses, giraffes, alligators, iguanas, bats and more. In addition, users can control the optical zoom cameras to get close to the animals and watch unique details and moments of their daily lives.

“This evolves into an immersive experience where viewers can build a deeper, lifelong connection with our animals,” said Anthony Rivera, chief operating officer at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.

A portion of every pass will go toward conservation efforts. In addition, all new aquarium membership plans will include a one-year subscription to Zoolife. To sign up, go to visit.cmaquarium.org/#/Membership.

Go to zoolife.tv for information.

NOTE: A previous version of this story had the wrong location for the Orana Wildlife Park, which is based in New Zealand