The Lakes Aquarium is an aquarium

Public aquarium

A public aquarium is the aquatic counterpart of a zoo, housing living aquatic species for viewing. Most public aquariums feature tanks larger than those kept by home aquarists, as well as smaller tanks. Since the first public aquariums were built in the mid-19th century, they have become popular...

 on the southern shore of Windermere

Windermere

Windermere is the largest natural lake of England. It is also a name used in a number of places, including:-Australia:* Lake Windermere , a reservoir, Australian Capital Territory * Lake Windermere...

, Cumbria

Cumbria

Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...

, England. It is one of the docking points of Windermere Lakes Cruises and also at one end of the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway

Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway

The Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway is a heritage railway in Cumbria, England.-Location:The L&HR runs from Haverthwaite at the southern end of the line via Newby Bridge to Lakeside at the southern end of Windermere...

. It is the third most visited paying tourist attraction in Cumbria

History

It opened in 1997 as The Aquarium of the Lakes when the displays followed the theme of a Lake District

Lake District

The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...

 stream, flowing down into the lake and then on to Morecambe Bay

Morecambe Bay

Morecambe Bay is a large bay in northwest England, nearly due east of the Isle of Man and just to the south of the Lake District National Park. It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of 310 km².-Natural features:The rivers Leven,...

. During 2008 it was re-branded as the Lakes Aquarium, with a theme of the lakes of the world. The attraction is now owned by Spanish leisure company Parques Reunidos

Parques Reunidos

Parques Reunidos is an international entertainment operator based in Madrid, Spain. The group operates over 50 parks in almost a dozen countries. Parques Reunidos operates theme and amusement parks, zoos, water parks, family entertainment centers, and cable cars...

, who own and operate 67 parks across the world .

Creatures

The Lakes Aquarium contains both freshwater

Freshwater

Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...

 and salt water

Seawater

Seawater is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% . This means that every kilogram of seawater has approximately of dissolved salts . The average density of seawater at the ocean surface is 1.025 g/ml...

 aquatic animals

Europe

Brown trout

Brown trout

The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....

, rainbow trout

Rainbow trout

The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....

, golden orfe, koi carp, mirror carp

Mirror carp

Mirror carp are a type of fish, commonly found in the United Kingdom and Europe. The name "Mirror Carp" originates from their scales' resemblance to mirrors. They can grow in excess of 60lb - the last few British record fish have all been mirror carp....

, Eurasian harvest mouse, polecat.

Africa

African lungfish, African rainbow crab, Atlantic mudskipper

Mudskipper

Mudskippers are members of the subfamily Oxudercinae , within the family Gobiidae . They are completely amphibious fish, fish that can use their pectoral fins to walk on land...

, freshwater butterflyfish

Freshwater butterflyfish

The freshwater butterflyfish or African butterflyfish, Pantodon buchholzi, is the only species in the family Pantodontidae within the Order Osteoglossiformes. It is not closely related to saltwater butterflyfishes.-Description and habits:...

, knifefish

Knifefish

Knifefish may refer to several knife-shaped fishes:* The Neotropical or weakly electric knifefishes, order Gymnotiformes, containing five families:** Family Gymnotidae ** Family Rhamphichthyidae...

, Lake Malawi cichlids, leopard tortoise

Leopard Tortoise

The Leopard tortoise is a large and attractively marked tortoise found in the savannas of eastern and southern Africa, from Sudan to the southern Cape. It is the only member of the genus Stigmochelys, but in the past it was commonly placed in Geochelone instead...

, rainbow krib, killifish

Killifish

A killifish is any of various oviparous cyprinodontiform fish . Altogether, there are some 1270 different species of killifish, the biggest family being Rivulidae, containing more than 320 species...

, elephantnose, tilapia

Tilapia

Tilapia , is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the tilapiine cichlid tribe. Tilapia inhabit a variety of fresh water habitats, including shallow streams, ponds, rivers and lakes. Historically, they have been of major importance in artisan fishing in Africa and the...

, upside-down catfish

Upside-down catfish

Upside-down catfish, Synodontis nigriventris, is a species of catfish. It is particularly noteworthy because of its habit of swimming upside down most of the time. Upside-down catfish originate from the Central Congo basin of Africa....

, reedfish

Reedfish

The Reedfish, Erpetoichthys calabaricus, Ropefish , or Snakefish is a species of freshwater fish in the bichir family and order. It is the only member of the genus Erpetoichthys...

, tortoise

Tortoise

Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...

.

Americas

Angelfish

Angelfish

Angelfish may refer to:*Several groups of fish:**Freshwater angelfish, tropical cichlids of the genus Pterophyllum**Marine angelfish of the family Pomacanthidae**Angel shark of the family Squatinidae...

, black widow tetra, bleeding heart tetra, blind cave fish, bristlenose catfish, channel catfish

Channel catfish

Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States they are the most fished catfish species with approximately 8...

, common plec, convict cichlids, cory catfish, gar

Gar

In American English the name gar is strictly applied to members of the Lepisosteidae, a family including seven living species of fish in two genera that inhabit fresh, brackish, and occasionally marine, waters of eastern North America, Central America, and the Caribbean islands.-Etymology:In...

, jaguar cichlid, ocellate river stingray

Ocellate river stingray

The ocellate river stingray , also known as the peacock-eye stingray, is a potamodromous freshwater ray native to the basins of the Uruguay, Paraná, Orinoco, and Amazon Rivers....

, piranha

Piranha

A piranha or piraña is a member of family Characidae in order Characiformes, an omnivorous freshwater fish that inhabits South American rivers. In Venezuela, they are called caribes...

, red-bellied pacu, red-bellied piranha

Red-bellied piranha

-Diet:Their diet consists largely of fish, insects, worms, crustaceans, and the occasional larger animal. In contrast to their reputation, they usually feed on dead, dying, and injured vertebrates in the wild, but have been known to attack healthy animals. The fish usually feed in large schools...

, redtail catfish

Redtail catfish

The redtail catfish, Phractocephalus hemioliopterus, is a pimelodid catfish named for its red or orange caudal fin. In Venezuela it is known as cajaro and in Brazil and even in a few parts of Bay of Bengal it is known as pirarara. It is the only extant species of the genus Phractocephalus. This...

, silver dollar

Metynnis argenteus

Silver dollar is a common name given to a number of species of fishes, mostly in the genus Metynnis, tropical fish belonging to the Characidae family which are closely related to piranha and pacu...

, South American lungfish

South American lungfish

The South American lungfish, Lepidosiren paradoxa, is the single species of lungfish found in swamps and slow-moving waters of the Amazon, Paraguay, and lower Paraná River basins in South America. Notable as an obligate air-breather, it is the sole member of its family Lepidosirenidae...

.

Lakes

Arctic char

Arctic char

Arctic char or Arctic charr is both a freshwater and saltwater fish in the Salmonidae family, native to Arctic, sub-Arctic and alpine lakes and coastal waters. No other freshwater fish is found as far north. It is the only species of fish in Lake Hazen, on Ellesmere Island in the Canadian Arctic...

, ballan wrasse

Ballan wrasse

The Ballan wrasse or simply wrasse, Labrus bergylta, is a wrasse of the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Its maximum length is 66 cm. All Ballan wrasse are female for their first eight years before a few change into males...

, barbel, beadlet anemone

Beadlet anemone

The beadlet anemone, Actinia equina, is a common sea anemone found on rocky shores around all coasts of the United Kingdom. Its range extends to the rest of Western Europe and the Mediterranean, and probably as far as the coast of West Africa....

, bib

Bib

Bib or BIB may refer to:*The Bib are small tribe found in the Hazara Division of Pakistan*Trisopterus luscus, a fish also called a bib*Bib Fortuna, character in Star Wars*Back in Black, an iconic album by AC/DC...

, Bloody Henry, bream tubercles, brill

Brill (fish)

The brill, Scophthalmus rhombus, is a species of flatfish in the turbot family of the order Pleuronectiformes. Brill can be found in the North Atlantic, Baltic Sea, and Mediterranean, primarily in deeper offshore waters....

, brook trout

Brook trout

The brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a species of fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. In many parts of its range, it is known as the speckled trout or squaretail. A potamodromous population in Lake Superior are known as coaster trout or, simply, as coasters...

, butterfish or gunnel

Gunnel

Gunnel may refer to:* Gunnel , a family of elongated fish* Gunnel , the top edge of the side of a boat* USS Gunnel , a Gato-class submarinePeople with the given name Gunnel:...

, chub

Chub

The European chub , sometimes called the round chub, fat chub, chevin, pollard or simply "the" chub, is a freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae...

, cod

Cod

Cod is the common name for genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and is also used in the common name for various other fishes. Cod is a popular food with a mild flavor, low fat content and a dense, flaky white flesh. Cod livers are processed to make cod liver oil, an important source of...

, coley

Coley

Coley may refer to:Animals*Coley , a type of cat from West Bridgford*Coley , a type of fish, similar to codPlaces*Coley , a band from the Eastern Townships of Quebec*Coley, Berkshire, a suburb of Reading, Berkshire, England...

, common bream

Common bream

The common bream, freshwater bream, bream, bronze bream or carp bream, Abramis brama, is a European species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae....

, common carp

Common carp

The Common carp is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia. The wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction, but the species has also been domesticated and introduced into environments worldwide, and is often considered an invasive...

, common hermit crab, common pochard, common seahorse, common starfish

Common starfish

The Common Starfish or Common Sea Star is the most common and familiar starfish in the north-east Atlantic. It has five arms and usually grows to between 10–30 cm across, although larger specimens are known. The Common Starfish is usually orange or brown, and sometimes violet;...

, common sunstar

Sunstar

Sunstar was a British Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2,000 Guineas Stakes and followed with a win in the Epsom Derby and was a successful sire....

, Connemara clingfish, crucian carp

Crucian carp

The crucian carp is a member of the family Cyprinidae, which includes many other fish, such as the common carp, or the smaller minnows. They inhabit lakes, ponds, and slow-moving rivers throughout Europe and Asia. The crucian is a medium-sized cyprinid, which rarely exceeds a weight of over 3.3...

, cuckoo wrasse

Cuckoo wrasse

Labrus mixtus is a medium size wrasse living in rocky areas in Atlantic waters.-Description:The male and female have different colouration....

, dahlia anemone, diving duck

Diving duck

The diving ducks, commonly called pochards or scaups, are a category of duck which feed by diving beneath the surface of the water. They are part of the diverse and very large Anatidae family that includes ducks, geese, and swans....

s. edible crab

Edible crab

Cancer pagurus, commonly known as the edible crab or brown crab, is a species of crab found in the North Sea, North Atlantic Ocean and perhaps in the Mediterranean Sea. It is a robust crab of a reddish-brown colour, having an oval carapace with a characteristic "pie crust" edge and black tips to...

, flatfish

Flatfish

The flatfish are an order of ray-finned fish, also called the Heterosomata, sometimes classified as a suborder of Perciformes. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through and around the head during development...

, flounder

Flounder

The flounder is an ocean-dwelling flatfish species that is found in coastal lagoons and estuaries of the Northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.-Taxonomy:There are a number of geographical and taxonomical species to which flounder belong.*Western Atlantic...

, European lobster

European lobster

Homarus gammarus, known as the European lobster or common lobster, is a species of clawed lobster from the eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and parts of the Black Sea. It is closely related to the American lobster, H. americanus. It may grow to a length of and a mass of , and bears a...

, European sea sturgeon

Sturgeon

Sturgeon is the common name used for some 26 species of fish in the family Acipenseridae, including the genera Acipenser, Huso, Scaphirhynchus and Pseudoscaphirhynchus. The term includes over 20 species commonly referred to as sturgeon and several closely related species that have distinct common...

, European plaice

Plaice

Plaice is the common name of four species of flatfishes.Plaice or PLAICE may also refer to:* USS Plaice , a Balao-class submarine* PLAICE, an open source hardware FLASH programmer, memory emulator, and logic analyzer...

, giant wels

Wels

Wels is the second largest city of the state of Upper Austria, located in the north of Austria, on the Traun River near Linz. It is not part of its surrounding Wels County , but a so-called Statutarstadt . However, Wels is the county seat of Wels-Land.- Geography :Wels is located in the...

 catfish, perch

Perch

Perch is a common name for fish of the genus Perca, freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which there are three species in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Perciformes, from the Greek perke meaning spotted, and the...

, roach

Rutilus

Rutilus is a genus of fishes in the family Cyprinidae, commonly called roaches. Locally, the name "roach" without any further qualifiers is also used for particular species, particularly the Common Roach Rutilus (Latin for "shining, red, golden, auburn") is a genus of fishes in the family...

, rudd

Rudd

The common rudd Scardinius erythropthalmus is a bentho-pelagic freshwater fish, widely spread in Europe and middle Asia, around the basins of the North, Baltic, Black, Caspian and Aral seas.-Artificially introduced:...

, sea anemone

Sea anemone

Sea anemones are a group of water-dwelling, predatory animals of the order Actiniaria; they are named after the anemone, a terrestrial flower. Sea anemones are classified in the phylum Cnidaria, class Anthozoa, subclass Zoantharia. Anthozoa often have large polyps that allow for digestion of larger...

s, sea bream, seahorse

Seahorse

Seahorses compose the fish genus Hippocampus within the family Syngnathidae, in order Syngnathiformes. Syngnathidae also includes the pipefishes. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek hippos meaning "horse" and kampos meaning “sea monster”.There are nearly 50 species of seahorse...

, starfish, tench

Tench

The tench or doctor fish is a freshwater and brackish water fish of the cyprinid family found throughout Eurasia from Western Europe including the British Isles east into Asia as far as the Ob and Yenisei Rivers. It is also found in Lake Baikal...

, tufted duck

Tufted Duck

The Tufted Duck, Aythya fuligula, is a medium-sized diving duck with a population of close to one million birds.- Description :The adult male is all black except for white flanks and a blue-grey bill. It has an obvious head tuft that gives the species its name.The adult female is brown with paler...

.

Virtual Diving Bell

The Virtual Diving bell

Diving bell

A diving bell is a rigid chamber used to transport divers to depth in the ocean. The most common types are the wet bell and the closed bell....

incorporates images of underwater scenes displayed on three two metre diameter semi-spherical CG

CG

CG, Cg or cg may stand for:*Airlines PNG IATA code*Categorial grammar*Constraint grammar*Carnival Games, a video game for Wii and Nintendo DS*Center of gravity*Centigram , a unit of mass in the metric system...

graphics screens.

External links

• Lakes Aquarium Official Website