Dallas Aquarium goes deep for exciting new exhibits, renovations.
There’s a lot going on these days beneath the surface of the Dallas Aquarium at Fair Park. According to Brian Potvin, Aquarium Curator, “Several new additions and improvements are planned to support our commitment to providing an aquarium and experience of the highest caliber.”
Let’s start with the interactive Coastal Touch Pool, which will be open soon. It will be filled with different species of intriguing sea creatures within easy reach. “Kids love picking up or ‘petting’ the underwater animals that will call this 2,000-gallon tank home: colorful horseshoe crabs, sea stars and other marine life,” says Mr. Potvin.
Equally exciting is one of the Aquarium’s newest acquisitions, a giant Pacific octopus, which arrived last July. According to Mr. Potvin, “She came in at 1½ pounds and could grow to 160 pounds. Kids are thrilled whenever her many suction-cupped arms tenaciously climb the glass case!”
These new must-sees join other popular attractions such as shark and piranha feedings….make that feeding frenzies, because the piranhas are ravenous! The Seahorse Rodeo remains a big draw; visitors watch nine species play with their tank mates and “the boys” give birth.
Perfecting and preserving environments as never before.
Behind-the-scenes renovations—especially life support improvements—ensure the best possible living conditions for the fish, and accreditation for the Aquarium, part of the Dallas Zoo. The latest equipment keeps temperatures and chemicals in the water from fluctuating.
Another major aim of the Aquarium is reducing the amount of water the Aquarium uses, no small feat for a building centered on H²O. “We have our own well out back,” states Mr. Potvin. “But we’re rapidly closing in on our goal of less dependence on it. We want to be among the leaders in environmental conservation.” The Dallas Aquarium is looking to reduce its freshwater usage from 16 million gallons per year to 8 million gallons per year.
The Aquarium’s new supervisor, Barrett Christie, has a very strong coral background and is working on raising coral in captivity for visitors to see. “Coral in the world’s seas are very threatened by both sewage and global warming,” he says. “If we can raise them in the purer surroundings of aquariums, we can repopulate many of the species.”
Re-acquaint yourself with the Dallas Aquarium and discover what’s new…for the good of the species that live there, and our environment. For more information, visit the Dallas Aquarium's website.
