Adventure Aquarium facts for kids
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| Date opened | February 29, 1992 (May 25, 2005 opened as Adventure Aquarium) |
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| Location | Camden, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 39°56′42″N 75°07′52″W / 39.945°N 75.131°W |
| Volume of largest tank | 760,000 US gal (2,900,000 L) |
| Total volume of tanks | 2 million US gallons (7,600,000 L) |
| Memberships | AZA |
| Major exhibits | 11 |
The Adventure Aquarium is a super cool place in Camden, New Jersey, right on the Delaware River. It's run by Herschend Family Entertainment and is full of amazing sea creatures! It first opened in 1992 as the Thomas H. Kean New Jersey State Aquarium. It got a big makeover and reopened as Adventure Aquarium on May 25, 2005. Today, it's home to about 8,000 animals, living in all sorts of watery homes, from fresh water to salty ocean environments. The tanks hold over 2 million gallons of water, and there's lots of space for visitors to explore!
Contents
History of the Aquarium
Why the Aquarium Was Built
The New Jersey State Aquarium was planned to help make the Camden waterfront a better place. The idea was to create a fun spot that would bring in visitors and new businesses. This would help the city of Camden grow and become more lively. Other cities, like Baltimore, had seen success with their aquariums. So, the New Jersey government decided to build one too.
The aquarium opened on February 29, 1992. It was first called the Thomas H. Kean New Jersey State Aquarium at Camden. A group called the New Jersey Academy for Aquatic Sciences helped design and build it. Their goal was to run the aquarium and teach people about ocean life and how to protect it.
Early Challenges and Changes
When the aquarium first opened, it welcomed 1.6 million visitors in its first year! However, many visitors and critics weren't very happy. The building felt plain and grey inside. The main area was very echoey and dark. The exhibits weren't very exciting, and many tanks just showed fish native to New Jersey. These fish were mostly brown and grey.
Because of this, attendance dropped a lot the next year. The aquarium managers quickly started making changes. They wanted to make it more fun and interesting.
Exciting Renovations and New Exhibits
The aquarium stayed open while it was being updated. In 1994, a new exhibit called Ocean Base Atlantic opened. This exhibit was a huge hit! It used the aquarium's massive 760,000-gallon Open Ocean Tank. This new area brought in fish, birds, sharks, and sea turtles from all over the Atlantic Ocean, not just New Jersey. It was a big success and won an award for its design.
The main entrance area also got a makeover. A large, spinning mobile with over a thousand shiny fish shapes was added to the ceiling. Staff members even wore cool uniforms that looked like they were from a popular TV show. These changes helped make the aquarium more popular and fun for everyone.
On July 1, 1995, the aquarium reopened after more updates. These changes made the exhibits look like a recreated Caribbean area and a real shipwreck. In 1997, the aquarium introduced its shark mascot, Chomp, to celebrate its fifth birthday.
Over the years, attendance stayed steady at about 600,000 visitors a year. In 2000, a children's garden opened right behind the aquarium. The aquarium also got a new entrance and gift shop.
The New Adventure Aquarium
By 1999, there were plans to make the aquarium even bigger. The State of New Jersey, which owns the building, looked for new partners to help expand and run the aquarium.
In 2003, a company called Steiner + Associates started working with the aquarium. They began building a large addition to the north side of the building in 2004. The original aquarium closed on September 7, 2004, for a complete renovation.
When it reopened, Steiner Entertainment took over most of the daily operations. The New Jersey Academy for Aquatic Sciences continued to manage the education and research programs. In 2007, Steiner + Associates sold their part of the Adventure Aquarium to Herschend Family Entertainment Corporation.
Amazing Exhibits to Explore
The South Building: Ocean Wonders
The original building is now called the South Building. It still has many amazing animals. You can see Atlantic ocean creatures in smaller tanks and the huge Ocean Tank. The second floor has even more unique animals. One exhibit, called COOL (Conservation, Outreach and Outreach Lab), takes you on an adventure with a pretend marine biologist. You can see animals from the Indo-Pacific region, Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, and Central America and South America. Some animals you might spot are the yellowhead jawfish and the coypu.
A new, tall waterfall tank called “Irazu River Falls” was added to this building. It's surrounded by green plants and looks like a tropical jungle. This exhibit was later renamed “Piranha Falls” in 2017. Nearby, you can find tanks with diamondback terrapins and a common snapping turtle.
The South Building also has the “Adventure Theatre.” This is a 154-seat auditorium where you can watch exciting 4-D films! These movies combine 3-D visuals with special effects like water sprays, wind gusts, and moving seats. It makes you feel like you're right in the middle of the action! The Adventure Theatre was the first 4D theater built inside an American aquarium when it opened in July 2005.
Many animals in the South Building were moved to make it easier for visitors to see them. Some new animals added include the shark ray, Cuvier's dwarf caiman, an electric eel, and bat rays and stingrays. In 2007, the aquarium added five new "touch" exhibits. These included updated "Touch-A-Shark" and "Meet-A-Creature" areas. New areas like "Touch-A-Ray," "Touch-A-Jelly," "Touch-A-Lobster," and "Touch-A-Shrimp" were also added. This allowed guests to gently touch moon jellies, lobsters, and shrimp. In 2012, the second floor became a “Kids’ Zone.” It has exhibits and a play area designed for younger children.
The aquarium has African penguins in its outdoor exhibit called “Penguin Island.” This exhibit opened in 1998. It was updated in 2017 and reopened in 2018. The new design looks more like the penguins' natural home in South Africa. It has heated rocks and a larger saltwater pool where you can watch the penguins swim underwater.
The aquarium used to have another outdoor exhibit called “Seal Shores.” It housed harbor seals and grey seals. This exhibit closed in 2012, and the seals moved to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.. That area is now a playground called “Penguin Park.”
In 2013, a huge American alligator named “Mighty Mike” visited the aquarium. He weighed 800 pounds and was 14 feet long! Mighty Mike travels to different zoos and aquariums to help teach people about alligators.
In 2016, eight Australian little blue penguins arrived at the aquarium. They live in an exhibit called Little Blue Beach. These birds were born at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia. Their home at the aquarium has a large exhibit area and a 9,230-gallon saltwater pool. Little Blue Beach also has a laughing kookaburra.
In 2017, the aquarium helped rescue and care for a baby loggerhead sea turtle named Darwin. They prepared it to live in the wild, and it was released later that year.
The North Building: Sharks and Hippos
The newer part of the aquarium is called the North Building. This building has three main exhibits, a food area, a gift shop, and a banquet hall.
One of the main exhibits is the "West African River Experience." Here, you can see amazing Nile hippos! The two female hippos, named Button and Genny, came from Disney's Animal Kingdom in Florida. Hippos can live to be at least 55 years old in human care.
The North Building also has the Jules Verne Gallery. This area is home to unique creatures like Japanese spider crabs, sea dragons, jellies, and a giant Pacific octopus.
The Shark Realm is another exciting exhibit. It features sand tiger, sandbar, and nurse sharks. You can see these sharks through huge floor-to-ceiling windows. There's also a 40-foot shark tunnel that goes right through the middle of the 550,000-gallon tank! If you're brave, you can even sign up to snorkel along the edge of the tank and feed the rays.
Above the shark tank is the Shark Bridge. This V-shaped suspension bridge is 81 feet long. In 2016, it was the longest V-shaped suspension bridge in the world!
In 2018, the aquarium adopted a newborn Cape porcupine. It was placed in the Hippo Haven exhibit. Visitors helped name the porcupine by making donations, and all the money went to a hippo conservation group in Zimbabwe.
Helping Our Planet: Conservation Efforts
The Adventure Aquarium works hard to protect our oceans and the animals that live in them. To help reduce ocean pollution, the aquarium uses recyclable cutlery and straws made from plants.
The aquarium also holds special events to teach people about conservation. For example, they used to have an annual Hippo Awareness festival to support the Turgwe Hippo Trust. In 2019, they held a sea turtle awareness weekend. They taught visitors about the dangers of plastic products for sea turtles.
The aquarium also works with other aquariums to help newly hatched sea turtles. They rescue and care for them before releasing them back into the wild. Their African penguin exhibit is part of a special program to protect the species. Since 1998, the aquarium has successfully bred 48 African penguins!
See also
- Philadelphia Aquarium (1911–1962)
- Aquarama Aquarium Theater of the Sea (1962–1969)
