Sea lions, penguins, whales and dolphins find a new home

Curtain call
(Tribune photo by Alex Garcia / May 21, 2009)
Shedd Aquarium President and CEO Ted A. Beattie, far right, and Ken Ramirez, a Shedd vice-president, leave a podium after announcing the beginning of a media preview for Shedd Aquarium's new Oceanarium. Behind them is a new curtain that can cover the windows that face Lake Michigan. The logo is a projection.

Place for the penguins
(Tribune photo by Alex Garcia / May 21, 2009)
Penguins swim in a newly modified habitat during a media preview for Shedd Aquarium's new Oceanarium.


Sea lions, penguins, whales and dolphins find a new home
Shedd Aquarium's Oceanarium reopens after $50 million makeover

By Tara Malone | Tribune reporter
May 25, 2009

Bif settled into his new home Sunday, maneuvering his 750-pound girth on a rocky ledge as water lapped nearby and onlookers marveled at one of the Shedd Aquarium's newest residents.

The whiskered sea lion is among a pair of the large, loud marine mammals that were added to the Oceanarium, which opened its doors this weekend after a nine-month, $50-million renovation. Bif acknowledged the occasion by going for a dip in the pool and then, with a contented sigh, resuming his waterside perch.

What began as a project to "scrub the 3-million gallon tub" grew to include a revamped underwater exhibit area, a waterfall and stream for salt-tolerant fish, a kids play area and a new exhibit of penguins that thrive in temperate weather, rather than colder temperatures. The renovations to the Oceanarium, a cornerstone of the aquarium, were needed for the pools that dated to 1991. With the beluga whales, Pacific white-sided dolphins and sea otters temporarily relocated -- shipped via FedEx, no less -- organizers opted to modernize the Oceanarium complete with a new filtration system for the animals and new restaurants for visitors, officials said.

The additional work came in an effort to make the marine animals more accessible to the 2 million visitors to the aquarium each year.

"We've always tried to pride ourselves in not having that much distance between our animals and guests, but there's less now. We tried to keep guests close," said museum spokesman Roger Germann.

Beyond Bif and Otis, eight Magellanic penguins also are new occupants of the Oceanarium. They join a dozen rock-hopper penguins in a new display near the new Polar Play Zone, where kids can don penguin costumes, learn about cold-water ocean environments and touch sea stars.

Cari Davis guided her 2-year-old son's hand toward the orange sea star in a shallow pool watched by three aquarium experts. The St. Louis mother traveled to Chicago with her husband and three sons specifically to visit the reopening of the big exhibit.

"You get up so close. They feel they are in the middle of it all," Davis said.

Even guests who've toured the aquarium may want to head back to meet the newest additions. As with Sunday, the first 100 visitors will enter for free Monday.

Starting July 3, the Oceanarium plans to unveil a new exhibit where visitors who pay a special fee will be allowed to meet and touch the seven beluga whales as they observe how trainers work with the sociable mammals, nicknamed the "canaries of the sea" because of their high-pitched squeaks and squeals, Germann said.

Aquarium officials expect the penguin eggs that are just now hatching will be ready for display by August.

Source:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-090521-shedd-oceanarium-pictures,0,5605413.photogallery