Tennessee Aquarium

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Tennessee Aquarium


Date opened	May 1, 1992 ^[1]
Location	Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
# of Animals	12,000 ^[2]
Accreditations/ Memberships	AZA
Website
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The Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, Tennessee is the largest freshwater aquarium in the world. The original "River Journey" facility is organized around the theme of "the story of the river", following the path of a raindrop from high in the Appalachian Mountains to the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 2/3 of the walk the facility's display follows this theme, with the rest given over to smaller aquatic exhibits hosting organisms from around the world. The self-guided tour takes visitors through three living forests exhibits that teem with life above and below the water’s surface. Along the way, visitors see thousands of animals like free-flying song birds, snapping turtles, sandbar and sand tiger sharks, stingrays, river otters, moray eels and colorful reef fish.

The new facility, opened in April 2005, ostensibly follows the theme of an "Ocean Journey", though with much less consistency than the original. However this facility does include more 'user-friendly' displays, such as a large shark and ray 'touch tank', large macaws, a butterfly garden with South American species on constant display, as well as the very large ocean tank itself. Other visitor favorites include the "Boneless Beauties" gallery where guests enjoy invertebrates like jellyfish, cuttlefish, giant Pacific octopus and Japanese spider crabs. An even newer 16,000 gallon penguin exhibit, with ten rockhopper and ten gentoo penguins, is set to open in May 2007. News of the actual opening should be available on the aquarium's website.

For visiting families, a major point to consider is the immediate surroundings of the Tennessee Aquarium. Many other impressive city aquariums, such as Atlanta's new facility, are situated in somewhat bleak or threatening downtown environments. The Aquarium grounds, owned and maintained by the City of Chattanooga under a complex arrangement, provide a family friendly playground, with bridged walkways and a simulated stream in which wading is allowed. Although recent, and controversial, changes by the City of Chattanooga have eliminated all free parking nearby, several lots and garages offer paid parking within 2 - 4 blocks of the facility.

Many restaurants, ranging in price from fast-food, to moderately expensive, lie within easy walking distance of the Aquarium facility. The city's Coolidge park is just north of the Aquarium across the river, about 1/2 mile by foot using Tennessee's Walnut Street Bridge, and offers families an inexpensive place to 'hang-out' and eat lunch. At the south end of the Walnut Street bridge, there is an adjacent glass walking bridge, leading east to the Hunter Art Gallery. Kids may not enjoy the Gallery, but will love the bridge itself. A block south of the Aquarium is Carmike's "Bijou 7" theater, with the latest movies. The Chattanooga IMAX is just across the street from the Carmike theater, with a single screen serving up educational or family IMAX movies. One block over from the IMAX is the Creative Discovery Museum, an interactive children's museum based around science and arts. And, immediately north of the Aquarium, along the southern bank of the Tennessee River, is the beginning of the Chattanooga River Walk, which now extends continuously all the way to the Chickamauga Dam, over 10 miles away.

The Tennessee Aquarium organization also prides itself on its involvement in propagation, conservation and education efforts concerning endangered and threatened creatures and habitats like lake sturgeon, turtles and the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Some revenue from ticket sales supports various education, research and conservation programs.