Seattle Aquarium
Encyclopedia
The Seattle Aquarium is a public aquarium
opened in 1977 and located on Pier 59 on the Elliott Bay
waterfront in Seattle
, Washington, USA. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums
(AZA).
. On July 1, 2010, the nonprofit Seattle Aquarium Society, the official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization for the Seattle Aquarium, assumed management of the Seattle Aquarium from the City. Architects for the facility were Bassetti/Norton/Metler/Rekevics
.
The aquarium is a vital force for marine conservation and is uniquely positioned to help over 800,000 visitors each year, including 50,000 students, understand and become aware of the impact they have on marine life. An 18000 square feet (1,672.3 m²) expansion that opened in June 2007 includes a new 2625 square feet (243.9 m²) gift store and the Seattle Aquarium Café, as well as two new major exhibits: Window on Washington Waters and Crashing Waves.
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
opened in 1977 and located on Pier 59 on the Elliott Bay
Elliott Bay
Elliott Bay is the body of water on which Seattle, Washington, is located. A line drawn from Alki Point in the south to West Point in the north serves to mark the generally accepted division between the bay and the open sound...
waterfront in Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Washington, USA. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums
Association of Zoos and Aquariums
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums was founded in 1924 and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of zoos and public aquariums in the areas of conservation, education, science, and recreation.The AZA headquarters is located in Silver...
(AZA).
History
The aquarium opened on May 20, 1977, and was initially owned and operated by the City of Seattle, Department of Parks and RecreationDepartment of Parks and Recreation
The Department of Parks and Recreation , also known as Board of Parks and Recreation or Park Board, is a local government agency or department which oversees parks and recreational public works...
. On July 1, 2010, the nonprofit Seattle Aquarium Society, the official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization for the Seattle Aquarium, assumed management of the Seattle Aquarium from the City. Architects for the facility were Bassetti/Norton/Metler/Rekevics
Bassetti Architects
Bassetti Architects is an architectural firm based in Seattle, Washington with a second office in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1947, the firm has designed several well-known Seattle landmarks and many schools in the greater Seattle-Tacoma area, including several buildings at the Pike Place...
.
The aquarium is a vital force for marine conservation and is uniquely positioned to help over 800,000 visitors each year, including 50,000 students, understand and become aware of the impact they have on marine life. An 18000 square feet (1,672.3 m²) expansion that opened in June 2007 includes a new 2625 square feet (243.9 m²) gift store and the Seattle Aquarium Café, as well as two new major exhibits: Window on Washington Waters and Crashing Waves.
Exhibits
- Window on Washington Waters is a 120000 gal tank created as part of the 2007 expansion. It replicates the coastal waters of Washington state from about 5 to 60 ft (1.5 to 18.3 ), and is home to native marine life including salmonSalmonSalmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
, rockfish, and sea anemoneSea anemoneSea 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. During the dive shows which take place several times each day, divers wearing special masks are able to converse with the visitors. - The Crashing Waves Exhibit located next to the Window on Washington Waters tank is a 40 feet (12.2 m) wave tank that replicates Washington shores from the intertidal zone to a depth of about 5 feet (1.5 m).
- Life on the Edge was opened in 2002. Two large exhibit pools that include touch zones let visitors see the tidepool life of Washington's outer coast and of Seattle's inland sea.
- Life of a Drifter includes a 12 feet (3.7 m) high glass "donut" where visitors can be surrounded by moon jellies, a multi-species display featuring the giant Pacific octopus, and a 13 feet (4 m) touch table where visitors can get a closer look at some of the area's drifters including juvenile rockfish, sea stars, and plankton.
- Pacific Coral Reef is a man made coral reef in a 25000 gal tank that showcases fish that live in and around the reefs.
- Ocean Oddities is home to pinecone fish, cowfish, flying gurnardsDactylopteridaeThe flying gurnards are a family, Dactylopteridae, of marine fish notable for their greatly enlarged pectoral fins. As they cannot literally fly, an alternative name preferred by some authors is helmet gurnards...
, potbellied seahorses, and short dragonfish. - Birds and Shores consists of Northwest Shores, which shows birds in a variety of habitats of the coastal Northwest, Alcids, which showcases diving birds such as tufted puffinTufted PuffinThe Tufted Puffin also known as Crested Puffin, is a relatively abundant medium-sized pelagic seabird in the auk family found throughout the North Pacific Ocean....
s and common murres, and the Shorebird exhibit. - The Marine Mammals area includes exhibits for harbor sealHarbor SealThe harbor seal , also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere...
s, Northern fur sealNorthern Fur SealThe Northern fur seal is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily and the only species in the genus Callorhinus.-Physical description:Northern fur seals have extreme sexual dimorphism, with males...
s, sea otterSea OtterThe sea otter is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between 14 and 45 kg , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals...
s, and river otterRiver otterRiver otter may refer to:*River Otter, a river in Devon*European Otter*Japanese River Otter*Neotropical River Otter*North American River Otter, a common animal in North American waterways*Southern River Otter, found in Chile and Argentina...
s. - Puget Sound Fish is a three part exhibit showing fish from the Puget Sound, including grunt sculpinGrunt sculpinThe grunt sculpin or grunt-fish, Rhamphocottus richardsonii, is the only member of the fish family Rhamphocottidae. It is native to temperate coastal waters of the North Pacific, from Japan to Alaska and south to California where it inhabits tide pools, rocky areas, and sandy bottoms at depths of...
s, Pacific spiny lumpsuckersLumpsuckerLumpsuckers or lumpfish are mostly small scorpaeniform marine fish of the family Cyclopteridae. They are found in the cold waters of the Arctic, North Atlantic, and North Pacific oceans...
, midshipman fishMidshipman fishThe midshipman fishes are the genus Porichthys of toadfishes. They are distinguished by having photophores and four lateral lines...
, canary rockfishCanary rockfishThe canary rockfish is a rockfish of the Pacific coast, found from south of Shelikof Strait in the eastern Gulf of Alaska to Punta Colnett in northern Baja California.-Species description:...
, wolf eelWolf eelThe wolf eel is a member of the family Anarhichadidae together with the wolffishes of the genus Anarhichas. The wolf eel is monotypic within the genus Anarrhichthys. This superficially eel-like fish feeds on crustaceans, sea urchins, mussels, clams and some fishes, crushing them with its strong jaws...
s, and decorated warbonnets. - The Underwater Dome is a mostly transparent spherical undersea room in a 400000 gal tank, accessed by two short tunnels. It was built as part of the original construction and opened in 1977. The tank is home to species that would be found in Puget Sound including salmonSalmonSalmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
, LingcodLingcodThe lingcod, Ophiodon elongatus, is a fish of the greenling family Hexagrammidae. It is the only extant member of the genus Ophiodon...
, sharkSharkSharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
s, sturgeonSturgeonSturgeon 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...
, skateSkateSkates are cartilaginous fish belonging to the family Rajidae in the superorder Batoidea of rays. There are more than 200 described species in 27 genera. There are two subfamilies, Rajinae and Arhynchobatinae ....
s, and rockfishSebastesSebastes is a genus of fish in the family Sebastidae , most of which have the common name of rockfish. Most of the world's almost 110 Sebastes species live in the north Pacific, although two live in the south Pacific/Atlantic and four Sebastes is a genus of fish in the family Sebastidae (though...
.