Mississippi Aquarium is a
nonprofit public aquarium
A public aquarium (plural: ''public aquaria'' or ''public Water Zoo'') is the aquatic counterpart of a zoo, which houses living aquatic animal and plant specimens for public viewing. Most public aquariums feature tanks larger than those kept b ...
located in
Gulfport, Mississippi
Gulfport is the second-largest city in Mississippi after the state capital, Jackson. Along with Biloxi, Gulfport is the co-county seat of Harrison County and the larger of the two principal cities of the Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolit ...
; it opened August 29, 2020. The complex incorporates both indoor and outdoor habitats with more than 200 species of animals and 50 species of native plants. Construction costs were paid through federal, state, local, and private consortiums.
Construction
Groundbreaking ceremonies for the aquarium were held on May 11, 2018. The lead designer of the aquarium was Eley Guild Hardy Architects of
Biloxi
Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...
, with assistance from PGAV Destinations of
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, and Brown, Mitchell & Alexander, Inc. (consulting engineers) of Gulfport/Biloxi.
Funding for the US$93 million construction project – land acquisition, facility design, and construction – was achieved through public and private collaboration. Up to 90% of financial backing came from the City of Gulfport, the State of Mississippi,
RESTORE Act
The RESTORE Act (the Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourist Opportunities, and Revived Economies of the Gulf Coast States Act) is a United States federal statute that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 6, 2012. It was ...
grants,
and funds from the Gulf of Mexico Energy Act.
Private donations through the Mississippi Aquarium Foundation accounted for the remaining 10% of funding.
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Features and exhibits
Distinct features at the aquarium entrance and emblazoned on its logo are three sails.[
* Crocodile habitat
*Habitat of river fish
*Habitat of ]North American river otter
The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American rive ...
*Habitat of bottlenose dolphin
*Aviary
*360-degree acrylic underwater tunnel
*Bait ball
A bait ball, or baitball, occurs when small fish swarm in a tightly packed spherical formation about a common centre. It is a last-ditch defensive measure adopted by small schooling fish when they are threatened by predators. Small schooling f ...
habitat
*Habitat of bottom dwellers
*Visitor interaction with invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
s
*Visitor interaction with shark
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachi ...
s and rays
* Penguin habitat
*Habitat of the Gulf Community
The aquarium complex contains landscaped footpaths that are lined with native plants from seven physiographic regions of Mississippi.
See also
* List of aquaria in the United States
References
{{Authority control
Tourist attractions in Harrison County, Mississippi
Buildings and structures in Gulfport, Mississippi
Aquaria in the United States
Zoos in Mississippi
Non-profit organizations based in Mississippi