![]() ![]() ![]() * Where: Adventure Aquarium, 1 Riverside Drive, Camden, N.J. * What: The world’s longest, V-shaped rope suspension bridge over the Shark Realm exhibit containing 26 sharks. It is the only aquarium in the world to exhibit BRIDGE While it’s the longest bridge of its kind in the world, the first Shark Bridge opened in April 2015 at Newport Aquarium in Newport, Ky. This unique attraction opened on April 8, 2016. The Adventure Aquarium is the fifth largest aquarium in the country, and features 8,500 animals on display. Shark Bridge is an 81-foot V-shaped rope bridge that suspends over a 550,000-gallon aquarium. “We hope to engage and inspire our guests to revere, not fear, these majestic and misunderstood creatures,” says Nicoletti. ![]() Animals are given “no touch” breaks every 15 minutes so they don’t become stressed. In the second floor Touch a Shark exhibit, visitors can stroke white-spotted and brown-banded bamboo sharks, coral cat sharks and zebra bullhead sharks as they glide by in a shallow pool. It’s the largest collection of sharks on the East Coast. The aquarium is home to 11 varieties of shark, including the only great hammerhead shark on exhibit in the United States. “The neat thing about it is it gives the vibe that you’re somewhere you shouldn’t be.” “It took a lot of hours and a little bit of courage to construct,” he says. The bridge is made of four tons of steel, 148 bolts and enough rope to span the length of 63 football fields, says project manager Douglas Hess. We hope they walk away with a new respect and curiosity for sharks.” “The goal of this exhibit is to engage and inspire guests to learn more about sharks, which are greatly misunderstood. ![]() “For the first time ever, we will take visitors directly above the water and these magnificent creatures, all while granting access to areas previously accessible only to the biologists,” says Vince Nicoletti, executive director. The aquarium also lets visitors walk through a 40-foot tunnel, with sharks passing within inches over their heads. “Now they can see the exhibit from above.” The renovated exhibit will open in mid-April and while it’s probably nothing to worry about, we sure hope they take their sweet time making sure that rope bridge is sturdy.“We are inviting guest to experience a whole different perspective,” says Nicole Grandinetti, curator of fish and invertebrates. Along with the V-shaped rope bridge suspended over the 1,500,000 litre tank, the Aquarium plans to add several specimens of the scalloped hammerhead shark – an extremely rare, endangered species that is native to Hawaii and can grow up to 4.5 meters in length…in other words, possibly big enough to swallow a person whole. You’ll see why they are also known as the Ruby Shark. With their long bodies and dark grey to black scales, their bright red fins really stand out among the plants and decorations in your tank. Newport Aquarium’s shark tank already features an underwater tunnel that allows guests to view six species of shark – sand tiger, zebra, sandbar, blacktip, whitetip and nurse sharks – along with rare shark rays, stingrays, and less-menacing fish. Rainbow Shark Check on Amazon One of the most popular freshwater sharks is the stunning and entertaining bottom dweller known as the Rainbow Shark. At least, that’s what the thrill-masters at Kentucky’s Newport Aquarium seem to think, having just announced a number of alarming new additions to their Surrounded By Sharks exhibit, including a 30 metre rope bridge, the first of its kind in North America, that will allow brave aquarium-goers to walk just inches above a gigantic tank teeming with sharks and stingrays. The Shark Bridge is a 75-foot-long, V-shaped rope bridge suspended over the open waters of the Surrounded by Sharks exhibits 385,000-gallon tank. ![]()
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