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03/23/2006, 01:18 PM
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#1 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Ottawa, Ontario
Posts: 626
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Public Aquariums
hey, hey!
Lets hear some feedback: What are the best public aquariums you've vistsed in North America? List some pro's and con's about your hometown aquarium. happy reefin'
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A good aquarium is like a beautiful woman. Shes nice to look at but requires daily attention and constantly leaves you broke. Current Tank Info: 15H Mixed Reef, 150 HQI, 25lbs Vanuatu, SSB; 60 gal FOWLR 'Tap Water' Show Tank; 33L Skimmerless Softie Reef w/ BTA, 50/50 PC's, 70lbs Indo |
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03/23/2006, 01:21 PM
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#2 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: N.California
Posts: 227
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Monterrey Bay. It's really cool to see the temperate climate organisms. Cons include parking, arrrrgh!
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Control for smilers can't be bought Current Tank Info: 29 gal Reef, 30"Coralife Deluxe Aqualight, Aqua C Remora Skimmer, 24 gal Cube w/ 150w Sunpod. LPS, softies, bristleworms x 7.34 million, and other weird creatures. |
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03/23/2006, 01:22 PM
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#3 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 2,008
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The Monterey Bay Aquarium is the best, why? Because they kept a great white shark! enough said.
ok the parking is a little bad.
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I need a new signiture Current Tank Info: 90 gallon, 14 gallon |
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03/23/2006, 01:26 PM
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#4 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 2,008
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Steinhart in San Fran will be great when they finish their 180,000 gallon reef tank in 2008.
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I need a new signiture Current Tank Info: 90 gallon, 14 gallon |
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03/23/2006, 01:52 PM
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#5 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Stoneville, NC
Posts: 6,169
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Sea World Orlando was pretty awesome. theres a few small ones on the coast of NC i have been to they are not bad just not very big.
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Never ask a girl over to see your crabs!! <-Tony-> Current Tank Info: NONE currently |
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03/23/2006, 01:53 PM
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#6 |
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Moved On
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 667
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John G. Shedd in chi-topwn is a classic! Reef stuff, Beluga's, etc. How can you go wrong there??? YOU CAN'T!
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03/23/2006, 01:56 PM
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#7 |
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Moved On
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 667
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also in the H-town area, you have the Downtown aquarium, the Aquarium at Moody Gardens down in Galveston, as well as Sea World in San Antonio just a few hours ride west.
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03/23/2006, 01:56 PM
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#8 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 99
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03/23/2006, 01:57 PM
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#9 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: May 2005
Location: New York, NY
Posts: 2,281
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The National Aquarium in Baltimore isn't too bad. Parking stinks, it expensive unless you go Fridays after 5. but they opened up a new Australia exhibit that is pretty cool! Moneterey was awesome from what I remember about 9-10 yrs ago
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03/23/2006, 01:58 PM
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#10 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Ithaca, NY
Posts: 4,840
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I LOVED the Long Beach Aquarium, their Jellyfish exhibit is wild!
The only other one i've been to was Monterrey, but I wasn't as impressed. It all depends on what you're going for, tho.  -A
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A university professor went to visit a famous Zen master. While the master quietly served tea, the professor talked about Zen. The master poured the visitor’s cup to the brim, and then kept pouring. The professor watched the overflowing cup until he could no longer restrain himself. “It’s overfull! No more will go in!” the professor blurted. “You are like this cup,” the master replied, “How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup.” Current Tank Info: 56g, 20g. |
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03/23/2006, 02:57 PM
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#11 |
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Premium Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
Posts: 340
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The Seattle Aquarium on the waterfront is pretty cool. It's small, but I think they have made great use of space. They also give behind the glass tours to clubs and so on, was really cool to see their water purification system, which includes the biggest protein skimmer I have ever seen, about 10' high!
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100 gallon reef tank, 40 gallon sump/fuge combo with RDSB 2x ASM G2 with gate valve mod TLF phos reactor w/Rowaphos, Seachem Nitrate sponge 4x55w 50/50 actinic PC Current USA 0 amm, 0 nitrite, 0 n Current Tank Info: 50 & 100 gallon reef tanks |
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03/23/2006, 03:40 PM
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#12 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 154
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Not a North American one ... but the Aquarium at Atlantis in the Bahamas is awesome. But besides that, I'd have to pick Georgia Aquarium.
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03/23/2006, 03:55 PM
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#13 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 653
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I've only been to the baltimore aquarium. It's cool, but only 2 tanks or so with live coral
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03/23/2006, 03:58 PM
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#14 |
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Premium Member
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: NJ
Posts: 14
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Been to Boston, Baltimore, and NJ...would rate them in that order.
Boston's central tank (would guess about 40 ft tall) with the spiral viewing platform is really cool and they have a few of coral exhibits - one specifically simulating the breakwater area of a reef |
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03/23/2006, 04:02 PM
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#15 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: N.California
Posts: 227
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Oh yeah, LB aquarium also cool... then you can go to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles! Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas has some cool stuff, but probably not worth the steep admission price. Although the price was less than gambling losses in a comparable time frame. And I still go everytime I visit Vegas.
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Control for smilers can't be bought Current Tank Info: 29 gal Reef, 30"Coralife Deluxe Aqualight, Aqua C Remora Skimmer, 24 gal Cube w/ 150w Sunpod. LPS, softies, bristleworms x 7.34 million, and other weird creatures. |
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03/23/2006, 07:36 PM
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#16 |
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RC Mod
 
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Another vote for Seattle, which sits right on the bay and has a very intimate relationship with it. It has a great community involvement program. They're making some physical improvements and doing an expansion. And the jelly tank is quite interesting: you walk through a loop in which jellies swim without stopping. The big viewing tank, a dome over your head, is a nice place to sit and contemplate the universe.
I'm fond of Baltimore too---was fortunate enough to get a backstairs tour of both these places, and indeed, the equipment is amazing.
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Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%. |
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03/23/2006, 07:49 PM
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#17 |
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Reefer
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Seattle
Posts: 449
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Seattle Aquarium. Only been to a few aquariums and I have liked the Seattle Aquarium most.
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03/23/2006, 07:58 PM
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#18 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Cowlesville, NY
Posts: 119
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dont know if this counts, but the Waikiki aquarium in Hawaii is amazing! Everything is saltwater, no fresh at all. I would go back just to see the aquarium if i could. The boston one is pretty cool because of the main tank with the spiral stairs. Ive been to one in NC somewhere near (i think) of kitty hawk, but it was lame. Cant even remembr where exactly it was...
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03/23/2006, 09:03 PM
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#19 |
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Moved On
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: west hartford, CT
Posts: 3,480
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Not in America, but the second largest aquarium in the world, in Lisboa (lisbon) portugal. We went there to visit family, my first trip there, i saw some cool stuff there, too bad my grandma crashed my tank by giving it abtou a years worth of food in 2 weeks. apparently she forgot how much i showed her, and she forgot to read the post it on the tank saying take any fish out if they die, instead of readign the post it, she wrote under it, yellow fish dead and then the date.
a little off topic, but if ever in portugal check otu the Big awuarium in lisbon |
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03/23/2006, 09:10 PM
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#20 |
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Premium Member
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: New Mexico
Posts: 686
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The best I have seen is, believe it or not, OMAHA NB. check out the link?
http://www.omahazoo.com/exhibits/ind...s/aquarium.htm
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People who think they know what they're doing are especially annoying to those of us who do. Current Tank Info: 125 with 30 sump, two 58's with 20 sumps. 55, two 30's. |
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03/23/2006, 09:23 PM
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#21 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: North Dakota
Posts: 411
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i really enjoyed the tulsa aquarium. GREAT clownfish and anemone tank, and HUGE lobsters. also had a HUGE school of lionfishes.
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03/23/2006, 09:27 PM
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#22 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: Southern California
Posts: 112
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This will catch you off guard, but Gatlinburg Tenn. I liked more than the cincy aquarium
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Gary |
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03/23/2006, 09:39 PM
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#23 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Cleveland (parma)
Posts: 552
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I had a great time last weekend at the Columbus zoo. The manatee exibit was great. The sea dragon display is something I will always remember. Very exotic and very good looking.
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03/23/2006, 09:50 PM
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#24 |
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Registered Member
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: northwest indiana
Posts: 20
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Shed in chicago is a ggod day spent.But my all time favorite is the Key West aquarium,very small and only about 50 tanks (mostly reef) a cool nurse shark and ray tank.They also have a outdoor tiger shark holding area,and a petting tank full of all kinds of touchable stuff.In retrospect nothing too special but hey it's in Key West.
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the better you make it,the sooner you'll break it. Current Tank Info: 30 gal.reef |
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