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Under the Narrows

Rockfish dart between “rusty” girders. Anemones bloom and wave. A wolf eel thrusts out its enormous jaw, staring silently.
Welcome to life Under the Narrows, rich and complex.

Dive under the Narrows

A tale of three bridges
and the animals underneath.
From Tacoma to Gig Harbor, two sweeping bridges extend over the swirling Tacoma Narrows. But a third – the infamous “Galloping Gertie” – lies buried, collapsed in 1940 and now home to fish, eels and other marine life. We recreate that rich habitat here.

Meet Our Animals

Quillback rockfish
Painted anemone
Brown rockfish

Keep the Sound clean

It takes everyone.

THE THREAT: Marine life under the Narrows bridges have adapted and thrived in human-made debris – like a fallen bridge. But human trash also pollutes Puget Sound, harming animals.

TAKE ACTION: Take care of our Sound: clean up a beach, pick up trash and dog poop. Go straw-free and ask your favorite restaurant to go ocean-friendly.

Go Straw-Free Ocean-Friendly Restaurants

Aquarium Stories

Point Defiance Zoo earns AZA accreditation

Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium earned kudos and another five years of accreditation from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) in September. The Tacoma zoo also won a significant … Continued

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The Health of Puget Sound

Checking in on Puget Sound’s Health How healthy is Puget Sound? What areas are showing declines, and which are holding steady? Those are the questions divers at Point Defiance Zoo … Continued

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Saving Puget Sound’s Underwater Forests

An underwater crisis is happening, and there isn’t one apparent reason. Since the 1870s, South Puget Sound’s shorelines have lost about two-thirds of their bull kelp forests, according to a … Continued

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Who's nearby?
Check out the Tidal Touch Zone, where you can touch sea creatures like anemones and sea stars.