A Visit to Denver Aquarium
by Mike Shadrack
From the newsletter of The Ilford and District Aquarists Society, England, January
2003
Aquarticles
There is not much fishy business to report from this frozen tundra at this time of
year. There has been snow on the ground since the end of November and all the garden ponds
are frozen over. I have quite expected to see an Inuit with a spear standing over a hole
in the ice looking for Koi but this has not happened yet. I was surprised to see the local
river (called a Creek but pronounced Crick) frozen solid but with melt water from higher
up flowing freely over the ice below.
I have however been able to visit a wonderful public aquarium. Whilst the Artistes
Aquarium in Amsterdam might well be the best for the kinds of fishes that we keep and
Oceanarium in Rotterdam may have some of the most amazing aquarium architecture, the
Aquarium in Denver, Colorado would take a lot of beating as an all round aquatic
showpiece.
It’s an almost brand new building and the public entrance is very large, light and
impressive. Visitors are quickly faced with two choices: to take the right-hand entrance
tunnel first, or choose the left. Denver has been very clever in that it does not try to
exhibit all kinds of fishes from all parts of the world but concentrates on doing just two
geographical locations and doing them well.
Walking through the right hand entrance, visitors are taken on a “River
Journey” down the Colorado River from its source in the Rocky Mountains to its mouth
at the Sea of Cortez in the Gulf of California. There is therefore ample opportunity to
exhibit all the fishes from the various river types; from the cool fast running headwaters
through the shallow valleys and deep canyons to the wide desert meanders. Many kinds of
trout, bass, catfishes are displayed in bright aquaria as well as the amazing Desert
Pupfish (Cyrinodon macularius), that apparently survives extremely harsh
environments such as small isolated and often temporary ponds and desert springs. Here
water temperatures fluctuate widely and salinity levels can be three times greater than
that of the sea.
And not just fishes: ducks, birds and reptiles were also featured in a series of large
landscaped aquaria, many with terrarium surroundings. There were even diving ducks in one
of the aquariums. A very popular exhibit was a large river system, dammed by beavers and
home to four or five rivers otters that gambled and play-fought with each other as we
watched. Photography is not only permitted but Aquarium ‘journey guides’ were
constantly telling me how to do it properly.
Once the Colorado reaches the sea there is an opportunity to display a huge variety of
Pacific Ocean fish from colourful Wrasse to Angelfish and Puffers. There was a very good
exhibit of seahorses with a great deal of useful information.
The second “River Journey” takes visitors down the Kampar River. This river
quickly drops into an emerald tropical rainforest from which scores of species of fishes
familiar to aquarium keepers can be found. Most of them were exhibited in aquariums and
terrariums, some quite small and some very large. There were shoals of colourful Rasbora
species and the gouramis and barbs were well represented. There was a large well-planted
aquarium full of mature rainbowfish species. Colourful parrots and myna birds flew above
some of the large enclosures. The largest terrarium housed dozens of Tinfoil Barbs,
Arowanas and Bala Sharks and a trio of beautiful Sumatran Tigers. Yes, fully grown Tigers!
The Kampar River system reaches the sea via a mangrove forest, where many brackish
water fishes were exhibited, and then flows into a peaceful Coral Lagoon. As you can by
now imagine here were to be found huge marine aquariums full to bursting with every kind
of colourful coral fish including various Butterflyfish, Angelfish and Triggerfish. There
were also many invertebrates clearly displayed and the occasional scuba diver hand feeding
the anemones.
No large public aquarium can survive these days without a ‘walk through’
aquarium containing sharks and rays. Denver is no exception. An exhibit that depicted life
beyond the coral reef consisted of a very large aquarium with two walk throughs and
several observation bubbles containing four species of shark and many of the larger less
attractive Pacific dwellers. Nearby aquariums contained Stonefish and Lionfish. Just
before we left this River Journey there was a small, beautifully lit aquarium containing
hundreds of small jellyfish that shimmered and changed colours in the current and the
light. As we left this second exhibition there was just one more treat. A large open tank
surrounded by cleverly designed cliff and rockwork contained two charming sea otters. They
were resting after a long day entertaining visitors but still looked very cute as the
floated on their backs and eyed us dreamily through half-closed eyes. Was it them or us
who were on show I wondered?
Denver is an excellent modern aquarium that was a delight to visit. I appreciated both
the friendliness and helpfulness of the large number of ‘journey guides’ who
really knew what they were talking about and the clever merging of fishes, mammals,
reptiles and birds within concise habitats. It’s a great pity to hear therefore that
the facility may have to close due to poor receipts.
UPDATE:
By Janet Forgrieve, Rocky Mountain News
February 19, 2005
Nearly two years after it was sold in a bankruptcy court bidding war, Denver's
aquarium is finally getting its long-promised makeover.
Houston-based Landry's Restaurants Inc. has begun construction on planned improvements
that will give Ocean Journey a new restaurant, a new look and a new name, said spokeswoman
Jami Mabile.
Ocean Journey will officially become Downtown Aquarium some time this summer, Mabile said.
The aquarium and all its exhibits are still open, Mabile said, but the cafe has closed to
make way for an Aquarium restaurant set to debut this summer.
Changes will make the attraction look more like a similar Landry's project in downtown
Houston, she said, beginning with a new entrance boasting a rain forest exhibit.
Other planned exhibits include a desert region with snakes and tarantulas, as well as a
"touch" tank.
"It's going to have more of a broader range," Mabile said.
As they do in the Houston location, diners at Denver's Aquarium restaurant will find a
huge fish tank as the focal point. Landry's is adding about 250,000 gallons of new exhibit
space, including the 100,000-gallon restaurant tank.
The restaurant company also is relocating the aquarium's gift shop and adding a banquet
room that will be used for educational sessions as well as special events.
Plans filed with the city also show the attraction's exterior will get a new coat of paint
and a rock wall in front.
Outdoor rides and attractions, also similar to the Houston project, will come in a second
phase of redevelopment.
Landry's, which paid $13.6 million for the bankrupt aquarium in March 2003, fought battles
with the city of Denver over a property tax bill and the acquisition of a piece of
city-owned land needed for drainage.
At one point last year, Landry's CEO Tilman Fertitta threatened to raze the
building and sell the land if the city didn't re-evaluate the tax assessment.
Denver did, cutting the assessed value in half from about $30 million to about $15
million.
The last of the issues was ironed out in October when Landry's paid the city $1
million for the 2-acre drainage tract.
"I guess I was surprised that the road has taken as long and has been as rocky
as it has been," said Bob Hill, who was chairman of the formerly nonprofit aquarium's
board.
Hill, no longer involved in running the attraction, said he's happy to see the
project going forward.
"But I haven't been there in six or nine months," he said "I still
find it somewhat emotional. It has a lot of near and dear memories - it was a labor of
passion and love for the community." |