Tennessee Aquarium facts for kids
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| Date opened | May 1, 1992 (River Journey Building) April 29, 2005 (Ocean Journey Building) |
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| Location | Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States |
| Coordinates | 35°03′21″N 85°18′39″W / 35.0557°N 85.3108°W |
| No. of animals | 12,000 |
| No. of species | 795 (as of 2013) |
| Volume of largest tank | 618,000 US gal (2,340,000 L) |
| Total volume of tanks | 1,100,000 US gal (4,200,000 L) |
| Memberships | AZA |
The Tennessee Aquarium is a cool place to visit in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA. It's a non-profit public aquarium, which means it's run for the public good, not to make money. It first opened in 1992 right by the Tennessee River. Later, in 2005, a big new part was added.
This aquarium is home to over 12,000 animals from almost 800 different kinds of species! It's been recognized as one of the best aquariums in the country. Over 20 million people have visited since it opened.
Contents
Exploring the Aquarium's Exhibits
The Tennessee Aquarium has two main buildings where you can see all the amazing animals. The first one is called the River Journey building, which opened in 1992. The second is the Ocean Journey building, added in 2005.
River Journey: A Trip Down the River
The River Journey building is huge, like a twelve-story building! It holds about 400,000 US gallons (1,500,000 L) of water. When it first opened, it was the biggest freshwater aquarium in the world. This building tells the "Story of the River." It shows you what happens to a raindrop as it travels from the high Appalachian Mountains all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.
Some of the cool exhibits in River Journey include:
- The Appalachian Cove Forest: Here you can see playful North American river otters at River Otter Falls. You'll also spot free-flying songbirds and native fish like shiners and trout. There's even a waterfall!
- Delta Country: This area shows animals from the Mississippi River delta. Its main feature is Alligator Bayou, where you can see young American alligators and alligator snapping turtles.
- Rivers of the World: This part has smaller tanks with animals from famous rivers like the Amazon River and Congo River. This is also where you'll find Miguel Wattson, the electric eel! Miguel "talks" to the public on Twitter by sending out tweets when he gives off electricity. He even powered a Christmas tree in 2019!
- The Tennessee River gallery: This gallery shows off fish that live right in the Tennessee River valley. The biggest tank here is the 145,000-US-gallon (550,000 L) Nickajack Lake tank, filled with fish like the American paddlefish and channel catfish.
- River Giants: Get ready to see some truly massive freshwater fish from all over the world! This exhibit has alligator gar, arapaima, and giant freshwater stingrays.
You can also find turtles, seahorses, and frogs throughout the River Journey building.
Ocean Journey: From River to Sea
Ocean Journey opened in 2005 and is like a ten-story building. It holds about 700,000 US gallons (2,600,000 L) of water. This building continues the story of the river, showing how it flows into the Gulf of Mexico. Here you can see colorful hyacinth macaws, touch small sharks and rays in a special tank, and walk through a butterfly garden with free-flying South American butterflies.
Some of the main exhibits in Ocean Journey are:
- The Secret Reef: This is the biggest tank in the whole aquarium, holding 618,000 US gallons (2,340,000 L) of water! It looks like the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico. You can view it from three different levels, including an amazing underwater walk-through called the Undersea Cavern. Here you'll see sand tiger sharks, other sharks, and green sea turtles. One of the green sea turtles, Oscar, was rescued and is missing part of his flippers.
- The Boneless Beauties and Jellies: Living Art galleries: These sections show off amazing invertebrates like corals, jellyfish, cuttlefish, and giant Pacific octopuses. The "Jellies: Living Art" gallery even combines jellyfish with beautiful art glass displays.
- Penguins' Rock: Watch adorable macaroni penguins and gentoo penguins waddle on land and swim in their 16,000-US-gallon (61,000 L) tank.
Beyond the Buildings: More Adventures
The Tennessee Aquarium also offers fun activities outside its main buildings. You can take a ride on the River Gorge Explorer, a 65-foot boat that gives tours of the nearby Tennessee River Gorge. The boat leaves from Ross's Landing Park, right next to the aquarium. There's also an IMAX 3D theater where you can watch amazing nature films.
Aquarium History and Growth
The Tennessee Aquarium was built to help bring new life to downtown Chattanooga and connect the city back to the Tennessee River. In the 1980s, people in Chattanooga wanted to make their city better. They came up with the idea of building an aquarium on the riverfront.
The aquarium building was designed by Cambridge Seven Associates, who also designed other famous aquariums. The planners decided to focus on freshwater animals because it was unique and would attract more visitors to Chattanooga. The building is designed to show water flowing from the mountains to the sea, just like the Tennessee River.
Construction started in 1988, and the aquarium opened on May 1, 1992. Many people were unsure if it would be successful, but it was a hit right away! It quickly welcomed many visitors, showing it was a great idea for the city.
Growing Bigger: The Ocean Journey Expansion
In 1995, the aquarium added an IMAX 3D theater, which opened in 1996. Later, in 2002, Chattanooga planned more improvements for its riverfront. This plan included a big expansion for the aquarium. Even though another large aquarium was being built nearby in Atlanta, the Tennessee Aquarium said their expansion was to give visitors what they asked for: more saltwater exhibits.
The Ocean Journey building opened on April 29, 2005. It was designed to keep visitors feeling connected to the river, even while exploring ocean life. This new building, along with the River Journey and Ross's Landing Park, helped continue the story of Chattanooga's history and its connection to the river.
Helping Animals and Nature
The Tennessee Aquarium is not just about showing animals; it's also deeply involved in scientific research and helping protect aquatic species. Its research department started in 1994. The aquarium also has a special group called the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute (TNACI) that focuses on conservation.
Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute
The TNACI was founded in 1996 to protect water animals and their homes in the southeastern United States. They work to bring back freshwater ecosystems. This includes studying water quality and raising native aquatic species to release them back into rivers and streams. They work with many other groups to do this.
One big project is helping the lake sturgeon return to the Tennessee River. These fish were gone from the river by 1961. The TNACI collects sturgeon eggs, hatches them, and raises the young fish at the aquarium until they are big enough to be released. By 2015, over 180,000 sturgeon had been released! They even use tracking devices to follow some of the fish.
The TNACI also helps other fish like the Barrens topminnow, working to prevent it from becoming an endangered species. They also help bring back brook trout and many kinds of native southeastern snails and mussels. They even work on restoring habitats, like a spring that helps the endangered coldwater darter.
Other projects include studying the genes of fish like the blue shiner and creating a database of information about endangered fish species. They also check on the population of alligator snapping turtles in Tennessee.
Turtle Conservation and Reproduction
The aquarium has a large collection of over 500 turtles and tortoises from more than 75 species! They study turtle populations and work to bring back native species like the yellow-blotched map turtle and the bog turtle to their natural homes.
The aquarium is also working to save endangered Asian turtle species by breeding them. They are the only accredited aquarium in the US to hatch the critically endangered Beale's eyed turtle. Their success means they can send these turtles to other zoos to help create more populations.
Breeding and Propagation Success
Besides turtles, the Tennessee Aquarium has successfully bred many other animals. They have hatched epaulette sharks, coral catsharks, seahorses, jellyfish, stingrays, and cuttlefish.
Animals born or hatched at the aquarium are sometimes sent to other accredited zoos and aquariums. For example, their gentoo penguins and macaroni penguins started breeding in 2007. In 2014, some of these penguins were sent to SeaWorld in San Diego to help with their breeding programs. Red piranhas hatched at the aquarium have also been sent to other aquariums.
Seeing Conservation in Action
While much of the conservation work happens behind the scenes, you can see some of it at the aquarium! The "Barrens Topminnow Lab" lets you watch young topminnows being raised for release. There's also a sturgeon touch tank and the "Turtles: Nature's Living Sculptures" gallery, which shows baby endangered turtles born at the aquarium.
Learning and Community Programs
The Tennessee Aquarium and TNACI offer many educational programs for kids, teens, and adults. The aquarium is even accredited as a special-purpose school, which is unique for an aquarium! In 2009, it won a national award for its amazing public service and community outreach.
The aquarium provides educational programs for students on field trips and through outreach programs that visit schools. They offer free admission to over 30,000 students each year. They even developed a virtual reality program with Tennessee Tech University that lets students experience what it's like to snorkel in a river and see the effects of water pollution. The aquarium also has camps, workshops, and internships for students. They work closely with a local elementary school, offering field trips and even overnight camp-outs!
The TNACI also involves school groups in releasing lake sturgeon and other species into local rivers. They have a summer camp for high school students called CLAW (Conservation Leadership in Action Week) Camp. They also offer internships for college students.
The aquarium's outreach programs reach the whole community. One great example is the Serve & Protect program, which teaches people about sustainable seafood. This program, started in 2011, encourages people to eat seafood that is caught or farmed in ways that don't harm the environment, like catfish or Arctic char. The aquarium also helps with the AZA's SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) program, focusing on shark conservation.
- GeekBeat Archives, "Behind the Scenes at the Tennessee Aquarium" (YouTube, May 13, 2015).
