New York Aquarium

New York Aquarium
South wall
Date opened	December 10, 1896
Location	Coney Island, New York City, New York, USA
Land area	14 acres (5.7 ha)
Memberships	AZA^[1]
Website	http://www.nyaquarium.com/

The New York Aquarium is the oldest continually operating aquarium in the United States, having opened in Castle Garden in Battery Park, Manhattan in 1896. Since 1957, it has been located on the boardwalk in Coney Island, Brooklyn. The aquarium is managed by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) as part of its integrated system of four zoos and one aquarium, most notably the Bronx Zoo. It is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).

The facility occupies 14 acres and boasts over 350 species of aquatic wildlife. Its mission is to raise public awareness about issues facing the ocean and its inhabitants with special exhibits, public events and research. At the Aquarium’s Osborn Laboratories of Marine Sciences (OLMS), several studies were conducted investigating such topics as dolphin cognition, satellite tagging of sharks, and coral reefs.^[2]

History

The New York Aquarium opened on December 10, 1896, at Castle Garden in Battery Park. Its first director was the respected fish expert, Dr. Tarleton Hoffman Bean (1895–1898). On October 31, 1902, the Aquarium was adopted into the care of what was then the New York Zoological Society. At the time, the Aquarium housed only 150 specimens of wildlife. Over time, its most famous director, the distinguished zoologist Charles Haskins Townsend, enlarged the collections considerably, and the Aquarium attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

Early in October 1941, the Aquarium at Battery Park was controversially closed based on claims of NYC Parks Commissioner Robert Moses that the proposed construction of a tunnel from Lower Manhattan to Brooklyn might undermine Castle Clinton's foundation. Many of the Aquarium’s sea creatures were temporarily housed at the Bronx Zoo until the new aquarium was built after World War II. On June 6, 1957, the Aquarium opened its doors at its new location in Coney Island, Brooklyn.

References

Notes

^ "List of Accredited Zoos and Aquariums". aza.org. Association of Zoos and Aquariums. http://www.aza.org/current-accreditation-list/. Retrieved 27 May 2010.
^ http://www.orcahome.de/lupa.htm

External links

Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:New_York_Aquarium New York Aquarium] at Wikimedia Commons

Zoos and Aquaria of the Wildlife Conservation Society

Aquaria	New York Aquarium

Zoos	Bronx Zoo Central Park Zoo Prospect Park Zoo Queens Zoo

Zoos of New York

Aquaria	Atlantis Marine World New York Aquarium Niagara Falls Aquarium

New York	Binghamton Zoo at Ross Park Buffalo Zoo Catskill Game Farm Long Island Game Farm New York State Living Museum Rosamond Gifford Zoo Seneca Park Zoo Trevor Zoo Utica Zoo

New York City	Bronx Zoo Central Park Zoo Prospect Park Zoo Queens Zoo Staten Island Zoo

Zoos, aquariums, and aviaries

Types of zoos	Animal sanctuary Animal theme park Aquarium Aviary Bear pit Butterfly zoo Dolphinarium Herpetarium Insectarium Nature center Marine mammal park Menagerie Night safari Oceanarium Pheasantry Petting zoo Reptile centre Safari park Serpentarium Virtual zoo Vivarium Zoo

Conservation	Biodiversity Endangered species Extinction Ex-situ conservation In-situ conservation

Lists	Aquariums Conservation topics Dolphinariums Zoos Zoo associations

Animals	Amphibian Bird Fish Invertebrate Mammal Reptile

Other topics	Animals in captivity Animal training Behavioral enrichment Captive breeding Frozen zoo Immersion exhibit Nocturnal house Wildlife conservation Zookeeper Zoology

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