The Texas State Aquarium in Corpus Christi was founded in 1990 to engage people with animals, inspire appreciation for sea life and its habitat, and support wildlife conservation. Fostering the support of conservation in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, the Aquarium receives no city, state, or federal funding for its operations, and instead, relies on admissions, retail sales, memberships, event rentals, and the support from generous donors to maintain its operations.
Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) since 1995, the Texas State Aquarium was originally a concept developed by a coalition championed by the Junior League of Corpus Christi. Named the Gulf Coast Zoological and Botanical Society, the group changed its name to the Corpus Christi Aquarium Association in 1978, and the Texas State Aquarium Association following that, in 1986. After over two decades of planning, fundraising, and building, the Texas State Aquarium opened to the public with its first exhibit on July 6, 1990, and by 1993, it became federally permitted for animal rehabilitation.
Featuring a dozen current exhibits and, on average, six educational and conservation programs, the Texas State Aquarium supports the healing and conservation of sea creatures ranging from sharks to sea turtles. In addition, they support species and ecosystems that are integral to sea life in and around Texas, including otters, coral reefs, birds of prey, and even American alligators. On Friday, May 12, they announced the opening of their latest wing, entitled Caribbean Journey, with a price tag valued at almost $60 million. Taking close to three years to complete, it was the largest expansion of the project to date, and consists of 71,000 added square-feet of coastal lagoons, jungles, sea habitat, and coral reefs. Within the exhibit, reef sharks can be seen in a 400,000-gallon exhibit swimming in and around a life-sized shipwreck, in addition to other species throughout the expansion which include crocodiles, flamingos, bats, birds, a sloth, stingrays and coral reef fish. Check out the Texas State Aquarium’s website to plan your next visit, see their latest expansion, and learn all you can about conservation and maintaining a healthy sea habitat in and around the great state of Texas!
Sources:
Wikipedia
Texas State Aquarium
My San Antonio
