- February 18, 2025
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Dan Conklin, curator of St. Regis Longboat Key Resort’s wildlife lagoon, held up a gloved hand to a crevasse in one of the tank’s reefs. Cautiously, a spotted drum, with its black-and-white striped body, dotted fins and regal, curved dorsal fin came out. It grew bolder, dancing around Conklin’s hand, before darting back into its hiding hole.
Conklin, a professional aquarist of 30 years, is responsible for leading the care of the nearly 3,000 Floridian marine animals housed in the Under the Sea Lagoon since it got up and running in August. The lagoon offers an interactive experience for guests to learn about the area’s unique wildlife. All guests can stroll by the tank’s viewing window, getting a close-up look at a sunny school of grunts or the multitude of parrotfish, angelfish, squirrelfish and more.
The most adventurous visitors get the opportunity to hand-feed the rays.
The half-million-gallon lagoon is home to a multitude of fish commonly seen at tropical snorkeling sites in the wild. But it also houses two species of rays, the larger southern stingray and the smaller cownose ray, so named for its rounded snout.
“They’re very friendly, and people can actually get in and interact with the rays, and feed them,” he said.
The southern stingray are the largest animals in the enclosure, and aquarists Yvanna Paez Mendez and Tammy Nguyen know them well. Sarafina likes to shoot water spouts at visitors. Forest has the darkest coloration and a noticeably shorter tail out of the bunch. And they all have personal preferences when it comes to their favorite foods, with some being particularly picky about shell-on shrimp and other treats.
While lagoon staff handle feeding the larger rays to keep a close eye on their diet of shrimp, silverside and squid, guests get to directly feed cownose rays some tasty fish.
The Sutton family took part one recent afternoon, nervous at first to extend the food to the rays but giggling as the animals vacuumed up the treats and splashed about.
Guests Amanda Monin and Jaylin Jones said the experience was unlike any other they’ve had.
“It was awesome,” Monin said. “I loved snorkeling with the fish and stingrays, getting to see them right below you. It was so colorful.”
After feeding the smaller rays, the group could snorkel among the fish and wave through the side panel at other family members.
Conklin said the lagoon is the perfect venue for sharing some of the best of Florida’s natural resources in a way that is accessible and fun for anyone 8 years old and up.
He said the most rewarding part of maintaining this special exhibit is “seeing how excited people are to see the marine life, get up close and learn about it.”
Another unique draw resides in a pen just across from the tank: a pair of Aldabra giant tortoises.
Rose and Jack are about 20 years old and already well over 200 pounds. The species, native to Madagascar and the West Indian Ocean, can grow to 500 pounds and live to about 120 years old.
“They’re a young adult pair, and maybe we’ll have some offspring one day,” Conklin said.
During a recent visit from the Longboat Key Garden Club, Conklin and St Regis’ Director of Engineering Christopher Jenkins recounted how team members worked before, during and after the recent hurricanes to ensure the animals’ safety.
“Dan and I were a bit concerned about the storm surge with the lagoon,” Jenkins told club members. “We talked about it ahead of time, how to prepare and take care of the people, and how to take care of the resident animals.”
As the threatening weather began rolling in, the resort took preventative measures to protect its facilities, draining the lazy river and adults-only pool to avoid getting any chlorine in the lagoon.
Staff’s primary concern was that flooding ocean waters would overwhelm the tanks, perhaps drawing the animals out to sea. Though they hoped to avoid it, Jenkins noted that at least all the fish were sourced from the Keys and would ideally survive even in that worst-case scenario.
"Around the edge of the lagoon is rockwork that goes up about 18 inches above the top of the lagoon. At the peak of Hurricane Helene, the storm surge was about 2 inches from going over the rockwork," Jenkins said, met with gasps from club members.
While waves did lap at the walls of the lagoon, staff said the previously emptied pools luckily provided somewhat of a barrier to the rest of the resort’s buildings. Though cleaning all the sand, mulch and other debris was no small undertaking, they were glad to avoid any more serious damage.
Jenkins told the club that the resort's main building is built to withstand 145 mph winds and is fairly elevated on the Key. But regardless of the resort’s ability to combat storms such as Hurricane Helene, he hopes they won’t be dealing with such storms too frequently.
Conklin said the most challenging aspect of getting through the storm was “the worry about what was going to happen, the uncertainty.”
“We did have high water here, but most of the animals stayed in the lagoon, and it was fine,” he added.
There were a few close calls, but staff stood nearby with nets to prevent escape attempts.
"Dan and I were out there in calf-deep water with nets," Jenkins added. "There were a few rays that tried to make their way out, but we were able to get ahold of them and get them back to a safe area."
As for Rose and Jack, they took refuge in the resort parking lot further away, ready to retreat further if necessary.
Even after the storm passed, the danger hadn’t fully abated. Lagoon experts feared that ocean-borne pathogens could affect the animals in the days after the flooding. But luckily, the animals didn’t seem to suffer any side effects, Conklin said, and they are back to representing Florida’s fauna to tourists.
One question Conklin frequently gets is if he has a favorite animal at the lagoon. While the queen angelfish takes the cake with its fluorescent teal and yellow coloration, and the trio of porcupine pufferfish — Simon, Alvin and Theodore — draw plenty of attention because of their unique build, he said the hogfish are some of the most playful and interesting to train.
Knowing the animals’ habits, likes and dislikes is an important part of maintaining such a large ecosystem, and Conklin appreciates playing a central role in getting the tanks up and running, even with the storms and other challenges thrown at the resort since its opening. Other resorts may offer luxury services akin to the St. Regis, but none have this exact experience, he said.
As part of its youth outreach, the resort started a “Reef Rangers” program. Kids get to learn all about identifying the 40 different species of fish, feeding the tortoises, and other outdoor activities.
Access to the lagoon is currently geared toward guests, according to Lorna Kirwan, director of sales and marketing, because day passes are not yet offered. However, memberships for outdoor activities are available.
Full details about the experience are available on StRegisLongboatKeyResort.ipoolside.com.