KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The 650,000 gallon Sobela Ocean Aquarium will open in less than a month after years of construction and you'll already find a thousand animals swimming around inside.
KSHB 41 News anchor Lindsay Shively got a sneak peak of the aquarium at the recently renamed Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium before it opens on Sept. 1.
Admission will be included with a ticket to the zoo, but guests will need a timed entry reservation. Zoo staff hopes you'll be able to start reserving your spot in the next few weeks.
"Our aquarium is a theme that takes you around the world following the currents of the ocean," said Stu Clausen, aquatics curator at the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium. "We start in the warm waters of the Caribbean, and then we continue on going down into the depths of the Pacific and as you exit the room, you will be along the west coast of the United States into cold water."
You'll find a place to sit and watch the marine life swim overhead at the Pacific Reef portion of the aquarium. That's where you'll find multiple 10-foot-long sand tiger sharks, the biggest animals in the aquarium, swimming along other fish and eels in the largest tank in the facility with over 300,000 gallons of water.
"Right now, we're well-over 1,000 animals in this building. We're actually going to be bringing the zoo's population from about 1,700 animals, to when we're fully stocked, close to 10,000 animals here at the Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium," Clausen said.
I found Larry Lombardi the lobster! (Sleeping 🤫) He’s one in 30 million! 😲 Saved from a NY grocery store now at the new @KansasCityZoo Sobela Ocean Aquarium! ⬇️ @KSHB41 https://t.co/UMZWZfOSbA pic.twitter.com/fGmEjsmHrI
— Lindsay Shively (@LindsayShively) August 2, 2023
Animals still coming to the aquarium include sea otters, sea turtles and more.
