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The Fish Aquarium

Aquariums

The pleasure of viewing and contemplating aquatic species has its roots in antiquity. The ancient Egyptians, Romans, and other peoples kept fish in artificial pools. The Chinese selectively bred goldfish from carp. Yet looking down on fish is very different from seeing them eye-to-eye. It was not until the technology of glassmaking advanced to the point where glass plate and large transparent vessels became relatively common products of industrial commerce that fishkeeping became both a popular hobby and, for some, a profession.

The Foundations of Modern Aquariums

With industrialization, increasing portions of the population, especially in larger cities, possessed enough leisure time to support the rise of the great natural history museums, zoos, and circuses of the mid-to-late nineteenth century. Those three kinds of institutions had very different missions, and the tension between their different ways of presenting animals remains evident in aquariums today.

Natural history museums conduct scientific research, because classification of collections was their initial concern. Only secondarily were exhibits developed to educate the public. Circuses strive to entertain and astonish audience' the more that animals could be trained to mimic human behaviors, the better. In their early years, zoos' focus on exhibiting captive animals by category left only rudimentary thought for animals' needs and the natural habitats from which they had been taken.

This postcard from 1909 depicts the aquarium in Venice, California. Originally built in that year for $20,000, the aquarium later became the marine biological station for the University of Southern California.

As for the first aquatic gardens or aquariums, a few were constructed in basements of natural history museums, whereas some were more or less the extension of circuses. For instance, in New York and Boston, P. T. Barnum operated aquarium displays that included trained seals and beluga whales as well as fish in tanks. Other displays occupied a portion of municipal zoos, or were separately administered by the same city agencies. During both the Great Depression (1929–1939) and World War II (1939–1945), many urban areas, along with their zoos and aquariums, went into decline.

Renewal of Public Interest in Aquariums

The mid-twentieth century saw the rise of oceanographic parks emphasizing dolphins and sea lions trained through the behaviorist techniques then dominating psychology. Jacques Cousteau's television series gave the public an entirely new view of underwater life. In response to the public's heightened awareness and new expectations, aquarium managers began to respond with displays that, with increasing sophistication, replicated coral reefs and the habitats of fish and other aquatic animals.

The New England Aquarium, completed in 1969 in Boston, Massachusetts, was the first aquarium constructed from the ground up to replicate natural habitats. An opportunity for children to touch living sea stars and other hardy local tide-pool invertebrates became a signature exhibit. Its near-immediate success as a tourist attraction helped reverse the decline of the city's waterfront, leading to similar efforts in other cities and the refurbishment of many established aquariums throughout the United States and abroad.

The Modern Aquarium and its Newfound Roles

Today's aquariums are in stark contrast to those of 50 years ago. Scientific research, stewardship, and education are key values supported by both large and small operations.

Study and Management.

Many aquariums include scientific research staff, as do zoos and natural history museums. Early research focused on classification, behavior, and husbandry of individual species. Contemporary In New South Wales, Australia, visitors to Sydney Aquarium's open ocean display watch a shark swim overhead. Modern aquariums engage visitors through creative and interactive display designs not possible in early aquariums. research tends to focus on the holistic management of natural systems.

Study and management of water quality is a priority for exhibition of species that both excrete and respire (breathe) in water. Recognition of the need to think systemically about human impacts on aquatic wildlife has led investigators to focus on protection of species that are vanishing from the wild due to overfishing and habitat loss. Captive breeding programs are now important to preserve endangered animals. Success reflects increasing skill at meeting the unique needs of diverse aquatic species.

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