Getting up close with sharks at The Deep in Hull RICHARD FOSTER and his children survive a close encounter with sharks

The Deep, the award-winning family attraction on the Humber Estuary, enables visitors to enjoy a close-up view of a bewildering array of marine life.

Fish come in all shapes, sizes and colours, each one - thanks to evolution - ideally suited to surviving in its environment.

There are more than 100 species of marine life living in the Deep, Hull's £45.5 million Millennium Commission lottery project. The venue has attracted about 800,000 visitors since opening in March last year.

The stars of the Deep - billed as the world's only submarium - are the sharks. These finely-tuned killing machines have fascinated humankind for centuries.

But the sharks living in the carefully-controlled environment of the Deep show little interest in hunting down their natural quarry for breakfast, lunch or supper. This is because they never go hungry. The staff responsible for the welfare of the 2,500 fish in the Deep work hard to ensure the sharks are well fed.

Several times a week divers swim into the ten-metre deep "endless oceans" tank, with its 2.3 million litres of water, to feed the sharks with pieces of white fish, such as cod and haddock. The procedure is called "target feeding".

Tilly and Tara, a pair of nurse sharks, attracted quite a crowd during my visit to the Deep with my children - Sophie, 15, Daniel, 13, and Rachel, ten.

Nurse sharks are lazy, spending most of their time lying on the seabed. Fortunately, Tilly and Tara had positioned themselves close to one of the tank's viewing windows, giving us an excellent view.

One of them went for a swim after being disturbed by a stingray. The shark moved with tremendous grace and strength.

Stingrays have been described as "squashed-up sharks" because they are such close relatives. They are also beautiful swimmers, despite their flat shape.

The "bubble lift" which takes people from the bottom to the top of the ocean tank always attracts queues. If you do not like queuing, use the stairs instead, which offer magnificent views of the fish - thanks to the staircase's large windows.

Another popular attraction is Bernard, a flying fish usually found in the warm waters of the Red Sea. He swam near the surface of the lagoon with its 3.5-metre deep coral wall. Bernard cut a lonely figure and hopefully staff at the Deep will find a mate for him.

The Deep has already successfully bred sea horses - the offspring have been put in quarantine to enable them to grow in safety - and staff also hope other species of marine life will breed.

A visit to the Deep is not just about peering at fish. The attraction is keen to educate visitors about global issues concerning the marine environment.

Visitors can enter the virtual undersea world of the Deep's futuristic research station, Deep Blue One, with a variety of hands-on interactive computer games.

You can also feel the ice-cold walls of the Polar Gallery and discover how global warming might affect where you live.

The Deep wants to build on its success with a £6 million phase two development, which includes covered queuing areas, a larger shop, a doubling of the educational facilities and what is promised to be the world's biggest display on the twilight zone of the ocean.

Fact file:

The Deep is a one-hour drive from York to Hull, follow the brown tourist signs for the Deep.

There is limited car parking - £3 for six hours with £2 refundable against purchases made in the Deep's shop or caf.

Opening times: 10am to 6pm daily (last entry 5pm). Allow three hours for visit. Arrive at 10am or 3pm to avoid queues.

Admission: adults £6; children (aged three to 15 inclusive) £4; OAPs £4; Family ticket (two adults, three children/OAPs) £18.

Phone: 01482 381000

Website: www.thedeep.co.uk

Updated: 08:47 Saturday, April 12, 2003