It’s fin-tastic!
Sharks bring plenty of bite to exhibit at N.Y. Aquarium
BROOKLYN’S population just grew by more than a dozen killer species.
The newest exhibit at the New York Aquarium — Ocean Wonders: Sharks! — has added a whopping 18 species to the aquarium’s animal count, along with grandiose displays for thousands of majestic sea creatures to call home.
“This represents a major expansion,” said Jon Forrest Dohlin, the aquarium’s director and vice president of the Wildlife Conservation Society.
“Definitely not your grandfather’s aquarium.”
Visitors are invited to gape at 115 marine species — many of which reside in the waters just feet from the aquarium’s 14-acre campus alongside the Coney Island Boardwalk.
“All of this is right offshore here,” Forrest Dohlin told the Daily News, pointing to the glittering marine wildlife dwelling overhead. “These are all New Yorkers just as we are. The city that never sleeps is surrounded by the sea that never sleeps.”
Upon entering the exhibit, all that separates visitors from aquamarine waters abounding with neon coral reefs is a 40-foot-long, 9-inch-thick acrylic tunnel.
Sharp-toothed predators will mingle with elegant rays, turtles and schools of fish at the gleaming new exhibit that sprawls 57,500 square feet and rises three stories high.
Starting June 30, Forrest Dohlin said, New Yorkers will be invited to learn about sharks, which, while not warm and fuzzy, do have an eco-friendlier side not shown in the movies..
“Sharks as apex predators are important to the health of all the marine habitats,” he said. “They’re not just ‘Jaws.’ They are, in fact, super important — and super interesting.” Guests also will be able to ask deep sea divers equipped with microphones about the marine life they’re looking at in real time. “Live interpretation is a big part of this exhibit,” Forrest Dohlin said. “That interaction between guests and live people is the where the real message is delivered.” The $158 million exhibit emphasizes a focus on sharks’ vulnerabilities and will teach New Yorkers about how they can protect the ruler of the ocean and marine habitat in their everyday lives. “We’re taking what is a very simple thing, how people feel about sharks — which is fear and fascination — and then really unfolding that story into something much (richer.)” Approximately 100 million sharks die every year due to the finning industry and by-catching, according to Forrest Dohlin. While they are scary, sharks are also a keystone species in the world’s oceans. “A healthy system is what keeps these places diverse and intact. A healthy system, of course, relies on an apex predator to keep everything in check,” Forrest Dohlin said.