When someone mentions dinosaurs, most people think of creatures such as the T-Rex, Triceratops and Stegosaurus.

But while those Jurassic giants get a lot of attention because they lived on the land, many don't think about what was happening in the sea.

Adventure Aquarium in Camden hopes to introduce guests to a whole new breed of ancient beasts with a new exhibit, "Dinosaurs of the Deep."

Kimberly Horishny, aquarium director of guest experiences and exhibits, said part of the new exhibit will be at the aquarium through spring and part of it is permanent.

"This is the largest traveling exhibit we've ever had here," Horishny said. "It's 5,000 square feet and tells the story of what was happening in the water."

Life-sized replicas and casted skeletons of prehistoric marine reptiles are displayed among the living dinosaurs that inhabit the aquarium everyday such as jellyfish, sharks, and alligators.

"Every first through fourth grader learns about dinosaurs, but we don't hear a lot of talk about what was going on in the water," she said. "Dinosaurs are a right of passage for every kid."

"Dinosaurs of the Deep" features a 42-foot-long Plesiosaur hanging in the aquarium rotunda.

"The Plesiosaur had a long neck and they say it would hide it's body around the corner and just stick it's small head and neck out," Horishny said.

Guests can even touch a dinosaur.

"We put horseshoe crabs in the Touch tank," Horishny said.

Horseshoe crabs are direct descendents of dinosaurs and are endangered themselves.

"You usually see them dead on the beaches at the Jersey shore, so to be able to touch one is pretty amazing," she said.

On the other side of the facility, past the hippos and near Shark Realm is the permanent portion of "Dinosaurs of the Deep" featuring a life-sized replica of a Liopleurodon - one of the ancient oceans' most dangerous predators - whose teeth were four inches long.

"It's similar to the modernday shark species in the sense that they can smell their prey from far away," said Amanda Polyak, aquarium communications.

Kevin Keppel, executive director of Adventure Aquarium, said the exhibit will not only expand guests' knowledge of the mysterious monsters that once lived below the ocean's surface, but will also tap into everyone's imagination.

"While dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus Rex and Brachiosaurus were hunting the land millions of years ago, there were other enormous and deadly marine reptiles ruling the seas, and they were every bit as fascinating as their terrestrial counterparts," Keppel said.

For more information, visit AdventureAquarium.com.

Kelly Roncace may be reached at kroncace@southjerseymedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @kellylin89. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.