Meet Modern-Day Dragons at Ocean Park Animal Month – In High Definition

Immerse in the weird and wonderful world of reptiles and learn “How to Train a Dragon”

(21 March 2010, Hong Kong) Ocean Park will be transformed into dragon central from 2 April to 2 May during Animal Month as it plays host to the largest exhibition of lizards in Hong Kong. The Park has assembled from around the world a collection of over 20 species of the rarest and most exotic lizards—descendants of the legendary dragons—so that the Hong Kong public and visitors would have the opportunity of meeting them all under one roof. Guests will come away with all sorts of weird and wonderful facts about the world of reptiles and learn “how to train a dragon” through an exclusive interactive journey.
 
Ocean Park Chairman, Dr. Allan Zeman, said, “Ocean Park is once again bringing rarely seen wonders of nature to our guests during Ocean Park Animal Month - In High Definition. With dragons being one of the most important symbols in Chinese culture, Ocean Park is uniquely placed to present such an eye-opening exhibition of lizards—often thought of as descendants of dragons too! For the duration of the event period, these animal ambassadors will join over one hundred attractions and performances, dozens of dragon-themed gift items and 50 culinary delights on offer at Ocean Park.”

Among some of the modern-day dragons that visiting guests will encounter at Tai Shue Wan’s Hall of Mighty Dragons are: a whopping 2-metre long Malaysian water monitor fittingly called “Giant”; the funny frilled lizard, nicknamed “Bluffing Dragon”, which unfurls a spectacular crown when threatened; totally bizarre dragons like the “One Horned” chameleon, which communicates with members of its own species by changing its colour; and “Blue Spike”, a common iguana made special because of its extremely rare colour. Also on display are the world’s one and only black specimen of the tegu lizard; the largest species of legless lizards in Europe; and the New Caledonian giant forest gecko, the largest gecko species in the world. With all these raucous reptiles gathered together, Ocean Park will be crawling with fun!

As the Easter holidays fall within Animal Month – In High Definition, the Park has specially designed a series of entertaining and educational dragon-themed activities at the Mighty Dragons Academy for the entire family, including a display of eggs from different oviparous animals, as well as interactive games, colouring and reptile-themed origami. At Meet the Mighty Dragons, guests can have their pictures taken with these straight-faced creatures for a minimum donation of $10 to the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation, Hong Kong—whose conservation efforts on komodo dragons, the largest species of lizard in the world, in Indonesia will be exhibited at the Academy. At Dragon-pedia, another fun-filled educational programme, guests can learn from education experts how to take care of reptiles, as well as mind-blowing details such as “what makes a gecko stick on the wall” and much more. Kids can also enjoy wild and wacky water games, as well as inflatable games at Water Dragon Battle.

Over at the Waterfront, the Park’s resident Chinese alligators, once thought by the Chinese to be descendants of the dragon, will take centre stage in Gator Talk at Amazing Asian Animals – Gator Marsh. Guests can get to know about their natural habitats from the park’s animal keepers, who will also demonstrate the tools for taking care of them.

Also exclusive at Ocean Park is How to Train Your Dragon Live, a 6-stage journey of interactive games and amazing zones themed after scenes from Dreamworks’ latest 3D animated feature, which follows a Viking teenager named Hiccup as he captures and befriends a wild dragon. Visiting guests would pick up a shield at the start of the journey and work their way through different challenges to finish with riding Gronckle the dragon. Upon completion of all six stages, guests would receive a certificate recognising their dragon-training achievement. Ocean Park is offering a 10% discount on admission to anyone who wishes to relive the exciting adventures after watching the movie. Just present the movie ticket when purchasing your Park ticket!

In support of Ocean Park Animal Month - In High Definition, all 160 Kodak Express (KEX) outlets will display Park posters, banners and buntings.  KEX customers who purchase 60 photo prints will receive a photo album and a special offer to redeem an umbrella, both featuring Park logo and visual of Animal month, as well as a Park admission discount coupon for a 10% discount on adult and 12% discount on child ticket (maximum 2 adult and 2 child tickets), valid from 22 March to 15 May, 2010. The photo albums are available for purchase at 20% discount to Ocean Park ticket holders and annual pass members from 22 March to 30 June.

"Ocean Park is committed to helping people connect with nature by presenting conservation messages to guests of all ages through fun and immersive experiences. All the attractions specially created for Ocean Park Animal Month – In High Definition are for a limited time only, so I encourage everyone to plan ahead and book tickets now!” said Dr. Zemen.

 - END -