The focus of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, in Kure Beach, is to educate visitors about the waters of the Cape Fear region. The aquarium was recently named among the Best Aquariums in the United States by the Travel Channel and is one of the Top Ten Attractions in North Carolina. The Cape Fear Conservatory, the visitors' first stop in the aquarium, features freshwater life. In this large, tree-filled atrium, streams, ponds and swamps are home to frogs, snakes, bass, catfish, and perch. Box turtles hide among the Conservatory's groundcover. American alligators native to North Carolina occupy one of the larger exhibits in the Conservatory. An albino alligator exhibit opened in 2009. In 2006, the aquarium opened an exhibit featuring the venomous snakes of the region, including several species of rattlesnake, copperheads, and cottonmouths.
The Open Oceans Gallery includes Sharkstooth Ledge, which features fish common to offshore North Carolina, such as pufferfish, hogfish, and filefish. The gallery also displays octopus, jellyfish, and corals native to the state's waters. A new multimedia suite features an extinct whale-eating shark called megalodon. This exhibit have been opened on July 1, 2011, and includes projections on a 23-ft curved screen, as well as interactive holograms and touch-screen interfaces.
Holding 235,000 US gallons (890,000L; 196,000impgal), Cape Fear Shoals is the largest of the aquarium's saltwater exhibits. The 24-foot (7.3m)-deep replica of an offshore reef affords two-story, multi-level views of large sharks, stingrays, groupers, and moray eels.
The Spadefish Sculpture outside the main entrance of the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher.
The Exotic Aquatics Display features animals native to Indo-Pacific and other ocean regions. These displays include spiny lobsters, the red lionfish (Pterois volitans), and a North Carolina native, the spotted scorpionfish. They are both known for their inconspicuous, venomous spines. Lionfish are native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans, but in 2000 were confirmed as having established themselves in North Carolina. Australian spotted jellies, recently invasive in U.S. coastal waters, are among the gallery's newer exhibits. In June 2012, the aquarium opened the Bamboo Shark Touch Pool exhibit which allows visitors to touch live bamboo sharks. Bamboo sharks are considered harmless to humans and the aquarium hopes to educate visitors about sharks through interaction.
The facility closed in November 1999 for a major expansion and reopened in March 2002. The new construction increased the size of aquarium systems from 77,000 US gallons (290,000L; 64,000impgal) to 455,000 US gallons (1,720,000L; 379,000impgal). The expansion included the creation of the Cape Fear Shoals tank, a 235,000-US-gallon (890,000L; 196,000impgal) exhibit recreating the hard bottomed coral reefs off the coast of North Carolina.
Most of the larger creatures inhabit the aquarium's centerpiece exhibit, the 306,000-US-gallon (1,160,000L; 255,000impgal) Living Shipwreck. Along with hundreds of schooling fishes and other animals, they create a swirl of constant motion around a replica of U-352, a German submarine that lost a World War II battle with a Coast Guard cutter off the North Carolina coast.[3] The aquarium's three river otters also have lived up to expectations of stardom. With the help of the public, two were named Neuse and Pungo after North Carolina rivers. Neuse and Pungo came to the aquarium when they were about a year old in 2006. Eno, the third otter, was brought to the aquarium at four weeks old in April 2008, after his mother was killed by a car near White Lake. Aquarists bottle-fed him until he could trade formula for fish and other solid food, and helped him learn to swim. Now he's strong, healthy, energetic and playful. Wide viewing windows bring their playful antics and underwater agility to child-eye-level, and the lively pair enchants people of all ages.
Nimbus at The North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores, December 2011
The North Carolina Aquarium also features two hands-on exhibits: the Tidal Touch Pool, featuring a large variety of aquatic invertebrates, and Skate and Ray Encounters.[4]
On August 11, 2010, a rare white sea turtle was brought to the aquarium for care. The turtle, Nimbus, was weak and smaller than the average loggerhead hatchling. It turned up when a hatched-out Pine Knoll Shores nest was excavated for baby turtles left behind. Hampered by a cleft palate, it had to be coaxed into eating. Nimbus was a popular attraction at the aquarium but passed on October 4, 2023 at the age of 13.
Throughout the year the North Carolina Aquarium offers free daily programs, including live animal programs, animal feeding presentations, a "Live Dive!" show, puppet shows, quiz games and hands-on activities. A number of special activities are available for a small fee. In the summer, beginning June 1, the North Carolina Aquarium offers snorkeling, surfing classes, night treks to search for nesting sea turtles, onboard collection and river cruises, kayaking and canoeing excursions, and fishing courses. Kayaking, canoeing and fishing programs continue into the fall when seafood cooking classes are also offered. Behind-the-scenes tours, Dinner with the Critters, and Breakfast with the Rays are offered year-round.
North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island
Zoo
North Carolina Aquariums
Entrance to North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island
The North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island is a facility located on the Outer Banks. It holds a replica of the USS Monitor, a Civil War ironclad which sank off the coast of Cape Hatteras in late December, 1862. On June 27, 2014, the Sea Turtle Assistance and Rehabilitation (STAR) Center opened to the public.[5] The Center rehabilitates endangered sea turtles, including those that have washed ashore after suffering cold-stunning in winter waters.[6]
Jennette's Pier
In 2002, the NC Aquarium Society purchased Jennette's Pier in Nags Head, the oldest pier along the Outer Banks, with plans to refurbish it as an outreach site. Those plans were put on hold in September 2003, when Hurricane Isabel destroyed the structure. Plans were made to completely rebuild Jennette's as a concrete structure with a 1,000-foot (300m) pier. $25 million was set aside for construction which began in early 2009. On May 21, 2011, Jennette's Pier was finally reopened to the public. Year-round education programs and week-long summer camps focused on ethical practices in recreational fishing, marine science, and resource conservation are conducted at the pier. Jennette's Pier is self-supporting and receives no state appropriations to operate. Three wind turbines on the pier when repaired and upgraded will provide a significant portion of the pier's electricity.[7] The pier is also utilized as a platform for ocean-related scientific research projects.
In media
"Oceans Under Glass," a segment of a 1995 episode of the PBS television series Return to the Sea, profiles the operations of the North Carolina Aquariums.
The National Aquarium – also known as National Aquarium in Baltimore and formerly known as Baltimore Aquarium – is a non-profit public aquarium located at 501 East Pratt Street on Pier 3 in the Inner Harbor area of downtown Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. Constructed during a period of urban renewal in Baltimore, the aquarium opened on August 8, 1981. The aquarium has an annual attendance of 1.5 million visitors and is the largest tourism attraction in the State of Maryland. The aquarium holds more than 2,200,000 US gallons (8,300,000 L) of water, and has more than 17,000 specimens representing over 750 species. The National Aquarium's mission is to inspire conservation of the world's aquatic treasures. The aquarium's stated vision is to confront pressing issues facing global aquatic habitats through pioneering science, conservation, and educational programming.
Shedd Aquarium is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago. Opened on May 30, 1930, the 5 million US gal aquarium holds about 32,000 animals and is the third largest aquarium in the Western Hemisphere, after the Georgia Aquarium and Monterey Bay Aquarium.
The Seattle Aquarium is a public aquarium in Seattle, Washington, United States, located on Pier 59 on the Elliott Bay waterfront. The aquarium opened in 1977 and is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is a zoo in Omaha, Nebraska. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. In August 2014, TripAdvisor rated it the "world's best zoo", ahead of the San Diego Zoo and Loro Parque, based on an algorithmic assimilation of millions of reviews for 275 major zoos worldwide.
The New England Aquarium is a nonprofit organization located in Boston, Massachusetts. The species exhibited include harbor and northern fur seals, California sea lions, African and southern rockhopper penguins, giant Pacific octopuses, weedy seadragons, and thousands of saltwater and freshwater fishes. In addition to the main aquarium building, attractions at Central Wharf include the Simons Theatre and the New England Aquarium Whale Watch. More than 1.3 million guests visited the aquarium each year prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mote Marine Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit, marine research organization based on City Island in Sarasota, Florida, with additional campuses in eastern Sarasota County, Boca Grande, Florida, and the Florida Keys. Founded in 1955 by Eugenie Clark in Placida, Florida, it was known as the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory until 1967. The laboratory aims to advance marine science and education, supporting conservation and sustainable use of marine resources. A public aquarium and associated education program interpret its research for the public.
The ABQ BioPark Aquarium, located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States is a facility of the Albuquerque Biological Park and is located next door to the ABQ BioPark Botanic Garden. The ABQ BioPark Aquarium exhibits Gulf of Mexico and South Pacific saltwater species from a variety of habitats, including surf zone, shallow waters, coral reefs, open ocean and deep ocean. The highlight of the aquarium is a 285,000 U.S. gal (1,080,000 L) shark tank with a 38-foot (12 m)-wide, 9-foot (2.7 m)-high, 8-inch (200 mm)-thick acrylic viewing window.
The South Carolina Aquarium, located in Charleston, South Carolina, opened on May 19, 2000, on the historic Charleston Harbor. It is home to more than five thousand animals including North American river otters, alligators, great blue herons, owls, loggerhead sea turtles, lined seahorses, jellyfish, pufferfish, green moray eels, horseshoe crabs, sea stars, and sharks. The largest exhibit at the aquarium is the Great Ocean Tank, which extends from the first to the third floor of the Aquarium and is the deepest tank in North America ; it holds more than 385,000 US gallons (1,460,000 L) of water and contains more than 500 animals. The Aquarium also features a Touch Tank, where patrons may touch horseshoe crabs, Atlantic stingrays, and other marine animals.
In North Carolina, the Crystal Coast is an 85-mile stretch of coastline that extends from the Cape Lookout National Seashore, which includes 56 miles of protected beaches, southwestward to the New River. The Crystal Coast is a popular area with tourists and second-home owners in the summer, with a name coined by the Carteret County Tourism Development Authority.
SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium is a public aquarium in Sydney, Australia. Opened in 1988, it features a large variety of Australian aquatic life, displaying more than 700 species comprising more than 13,000 individual fish and other sea and water creatures from most of Australia's water habitats.
Birch Aquarium is a public aquarium in La Jolla, a community of San Diego, California. It serves as the public outreach center for Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, with over half a million people visiting the aquarium each year.
The Texas State Aquarium is a nonprofit aquarium located in Corpus Christi, Texas, United States. The aquarium aims to promote environmental conservation and rehabilitation of the wildlife of the Gulf of Mexico and has been accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) since 1995. Currently the largest aquarium in Texas and also one of the largest aquaria in the United States.
Shark Reef Aquarium is a public aquarium on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is located at and owned by the Mandalay Bay resort. The attraction opened on June 20, 2000. Its main tank is 1,300,000 US gallons (4,900,000 L), one of the largest in North America. The facility is 105,000 sq ft (9,800 m2), and displays numerous species of sharks, rays, fish, reptiles, and marine invertebrates. It also features a shark tunnel. The reef was developed in consultation with the Vancouver Aquarium.
National Aquarium Denmark, Den Blå Planet is a public aquarium in Denmark. The original aquarium was located in Charlottenlund, but this facility closed in 2012 and most of the animal collection was relocated to the new and much larger aquarium Den Blå Planet in Kastrup, a suburb of Copenhagen. The National Aquarium Denmark, Den Blå Planet opened to the public in March 2013 and is the largest aquarium in Northern Europe.
The Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, formerly known as the Virginia Marine Science Museum, is an aquarium and marine science museum located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, just south of Rudee Inlet. The exhibits at the museum are contained in over 800,000 US gallons (3,028,000 L) of fresh and saltwater displays.
The National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium is the most notable museum and research institution for marine biology in Taiwan, which located in Checheng Township, Pingtung County, Taiwan.
The Adventure Aquarium, formerly the Thomas H. Kean New Jersey State Aquarium, is a for-profit educational entertainment attraction operated in Camden, New Jersey on the Delaware River Camden Waterfront by Herschend Family Entertainment. Originally opened in 1992, it re-opened in its current form on May 25, 2005 featuring about 8,000 animals living in varied forms of semi-aquatic, freshwater, and marine habitats. The facility has a total tank volume of over 2 million US gallons (7,600,000 L), and public floor space of 200,000 square feet (19,000 m2).
The Children's Aquarium Dallas is an aquarium located in Fair Park, Dallas, Texas, USA. It opened in 1936 as part of the Texas Centennial Exposition, becoming the first Public Aquarium in the state of Texas. The aquarium received an $8 million renovation in 2010. The Aquarium has six exhibit areas.
Ripley's Aquarium of Canada is a public aquarium in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The aquarium is one of three aquariums owned-and-operated by Ripley Entertainment. It is located in downtown Toronto, just southeast of the CN Tower. The aquarium has 5.7 million litres of marine and freshwater habitats from across the world. The exhibits hold more than 20,000 exotic sea and freshwater specimens from more than 450 species.
The Shreveport Aquarium is an aquarium located in Shreveport, Louisiana, United States.
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