A fishy affair at Georgia’s Aquarium

Funded mostly by a $250 million donation from Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, the aquarium was built on a 20 acre (81,000 m²) site north of Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta. Marcus credited his 60th birthday dinner at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in 1990 as among the inspirations behind his desire to build an […]

Funded mostly by a $250 million donation from Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, the aquarium was built on a 20 acre (81,000 m²) site north of Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta. Marcus credited his 60th birthday dinner at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in 1990 as among the inspirations behind his desire to build an aquarium in Atlanta.

In November 2001, Bernard Marcus announced his idea to build an aquarium as a present to Atlanta, Georgia that would encourage both education and economic growth. Marcus and his wife Billi visited 56 aquariums in 13 countries to research and design a structure, and finally donated $250 million toward Georgia Aquarium’s construction.

After 27 months and with 60 animal habitats, 16,400 square feet (1,520 m2) of ball room space, 2 food service kitchens, gift shops, a 4-D theater, an on-site restaurant, and a parking lot, the Georgia Aquarium opened first on November 21, 2005 to annual pass holders and then on November 23, 2005 to the general public. At $26 per adult, $21.50 for Seniors, and $19.50 for Children, the price of admission to the non-profit aquarium is among the most expensive in the country. The aquarium has nevertheless far exceeded visitor expectations, welcoming its 1 millionth guest on March 1, 2006, only ninety-eight days after opening. The aquarium sold over 290,000 annual passes for its first year, before sales were halted (to avoid a “private club” atmosphere, according to Aquarium Executive Director Jeff Swanagan).

Collection

The Georgia Aquarium contains between 100,000 and 120,000 fish and other sea creatures, representing more than five hundred species. On June 14, 2005, the total number of specimens was unveiled after having previously being reported as “over 55,000”. Marcus was quoted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as saying: “I have been saying that we would have more than 55,000 fish; I just never said how many more.” The fish were transported from Taiwan to the aquarium by UPS in 42 tanks aboard an MD-11. UPS donated the cost of the shipping, estimated at over $200,000 US currency.

The aquarium’s most famous specimens were four young whale sharks from Taiwan named Ralph, Norton, Alice and Trixie, after the primary characters from The Honeymooners. Ralph died from peritonitis on January 11, 2007, and Norton followed on June 13, 2007 when the aquarium made the decision to euthanize him after he had shown signs of erratic swimming and had stopped eating. Ralph and Norton were with the Georgia Aquarium at its opening; Alice and Trixie joined the aquarium June 3, 2006.

The Georgia Aquarium is the only institution outside of Asia to house whale sharks. The sharks are kept in a 6.3 million gallon (24,000 m³) tank, and the aquarium was actually designed around the whale shark exhibit. The importation of the whale sharks from Taiwan, which was overseen by Jeff Swanagan and staff biologists, was “top secret” and had never been attempted previously. The move required the use of large aircraft, trucks and boats to ship the massive aquatic animals to Atlanta. The four whale sharks were taken from Taiwan’s annual fishing kill quota, which the country has since abolished.[4] Under the quota, the whale sharks would have been killed and eaten if they had not been purchased by the Georgia Aquarium.

On May 25, 2007, Taiwan’s Fisheries Agency announced the Aquarium had been approved to receive two more whale sharks before Taiwan bans the animals’ capture in 2008. On June 1, 2007 the two new whale sharks arrived at the aquarium. The two sharks, caught earlier in 2007, are named Taroko, commemorating Taroko Gorge National Park, and Yushan after Taiwan’s Jade Mountain.

The aquarium is currently one of only two aquariums in the United States to exhibit Great Hammerhead sharks; the other is the Adventure Aquarium. The aquarium has also been home to as many as five 11 foot (3 m) long beluga whales at once. Two males named Nico and Gasper were rescued from a Mexico City amusement park where they lived under a roller coaster. Prior to the opening of the aquarium, they were joined by three females on breeding loan from the New York Aquarium: Marina, Natasha, and her daughter, Maris. Because of insufficient weight, skin lesions, and a bone disease, on January 2, 2007, Gasper was euthanized. Marina died on December 1, 2007 of what may have been natural causes (she was 30 years old). Nico died unexpectedly on October 31, 2009 after being relocated to SeaWorld San Antonio temporarily with Natasha and Maris during an aquarium construction project. On March 2, 2010, Maris and a new male, Beethoven were returned to the Georgia Aquarium for the public to enjoy while Natasha was paired with a potential mate and remains in San Antonio. The aquarium is among six other US aquariums, including Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium, with belugas in their collections.

Continuing its drive to display marine animals rarely seen in the United States, the aquarium acquired a manta ray from an aquarium facility in Durban, South Africa. Named “Nandi,” the manta was caught by accident in nets meant to protect the coast from sharks. Officials at the Durban facility determined that the manta had outgrown its home, and offered the manta to the much-larger Georgia Aquarium. Nandi first went on display in the Ocean Voyager exhibit on August 25, 2008 as the first manta ray on display in the country, and making the aquarium one of only four in the world to display one. A second manta ray named “Tullulah” was added to the collection in September 2009.

Exhibits

The aquatic animals are displayed in five different galleries: Georgia Explorer, Tropical Diver, Ocean Voyager, Cold Water Quest, and River Scout. Each corresponds to a specific environment. At the left as one enters the aquarium is the Georgia Explorer exhibit, geared especially towards children. It features a number of touch tanks with rays and sharks as well as exhibits featuring sea turtles and the wildlife of Gray’s Reef – a National Marine Sanctuary off the Georgia Coast. The second exhibit, River Scout, also reflects regional environments. It features an overhead river where visitors can see North American fish from the bottom up. In addition to local specimens, this exhibit displays piranha, electric fish and other unusual freshwater life. The third section of the aquarium, Cold Water Quest, features animals from the polar regions of the world and contains most of the mammals in the aquarium’s collection. This exhibit includes beluga whales in the aquarium’s second largest habitat, Japanese spider crabs, and African black-footed penguins. The fourth exhibit, entitled Ocean Voyager, includes the vast majority of the aquarium’s water and almost 100,000 fish. This exhibit is designed to feature the life of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, and showcases the aquarium’s whale sharks, as well as a 100 foot (30 m) underwater tunnel and the world’s second largest viewing window. The final exhibit takes an artistic turn, as the Tropical Diver exhibit features many curious and haunting forms of aquatic life, including a living reef with live coral. The aquarium also features a “4D” movie “Deepo’s Undersea 3D Wondershow”, and other attractions, including the Ocean Voyager – Journey With Giants exhibit hall where the Chedd-Angier-Lewis production company, with Electrosonic Inc., has produced the Open Ocean Touchwall, a dynamic, interactive projection for species identification. This is a virtual aquarium where larger than life, fully articulated 3-D renderings of Open Ocean fish swim across six panels assembled to simulate a tank. Guests are invited to reach out and place hands or fingers on the fish. As they do so, fun and informative content bubbles appear to educate the guest about the particular species they have chosen.

Also, in 2009, the “Titanic Aquatic” exhibit opened, which features a walkthrough of what it was like on the ship RMS Titanic. The exhibit was at the aquarium until September 7, 2009. The Georgia Aquarium is now hosting the world debut of Planet Shark: Predator or Prey: The Exhibition. The exhibit is focused on dispelling myths and sharing facts to help create a better understanding of sharks. It will be open through April and features shark jaws, teeth and fossils, full scale shark models made from real specimens and more.

The aquarium development was managed by Heery International who served as the Program Manager / Owner’s representative for the Georgia Aquarium. The base building was designed by Atlanta-based architecture firm tvsdesign, formerly Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates. In addition, tvsdesign also did the interior design of the facility as well as the design of the two retail shops located inside the aquarium.

The aquarium galleries were designed by the St. Louis based firm of PGAV. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Aquarium