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The Aquarium of Genoa ( Italian: Acquario di Genova) is the largest aquarium in Italy. [3] Located in the Old Harbour area of Genoa, Italy, the 33,000-square-foot (3,100 m 2) aquarium is a member organization of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), and welcomes more than 1.2 million visitors each year.
The Aquarium of Genoa is the Aquarium with the richest display of aquatic biodiversity in Europe. The exhibition itinerary shows around 10,000 specimens of 400 species, coming from all the seas of the world. From rare ones like manatees, marine mammals that gave rise to the myth of mermaids, to better known ones like dolphins; from penguins to ...
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Welcome. The largest Aquarium in Europe. Come and discover an ocean of surprises. Come to the Acquario di Genova to immerse yourself in a world of emotions and live the extraordinary experience of a walk among dolphins, sharks and hundreds of other species that populate the planet's seas. 400. animal species. 200. plant species. 27,000 m2.
- Overview
- Behind The Glass
- Happy Feet
- Creature Comforts
Caring for 12,000 animals is an enormous task, but at the Aquarium of Genoa, it’s all in a day's work.
A staffer at the Aquarium of Genoa cleans the glass of the reptile enclosure after hours. The glass must be cleaned multiple times a week to prevent algal and bacterial blooms. Such blooms make it difficult for visitors to see through the glass, and they pose a health risk to the animals inside.
Every morning, just as the sun rises over the adjacent port, 40 men and women in matching blue collared t-shirts walk through the doors of Italy’s world famous Aquarium of Genoa. They are always the first to arrive and often the last to leave because, for this troupe of veterinarians, aquarists, animal trainers, and marine biologists, work doesn’t always end when business hours are over.
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Aquarist Rosita Pollio gazes at the cluster of upside-down jellyfish that she looks after. During their reproductive phase, these aptly named invertebrates settle on the seafloor with their tentacles facing upwards, to expose the symbiotic algae living in their tentacles to sunlight. Like coral, these jellies can sustain themselves on sugars the photosynthetic algae produces.
To create the series Maraviglia spent the past year visiting European zoos and aquariums to capture images of artificial environments and the people who maintain them.
“I wanted to do something with animals,” says Maraviglia. “I’d always worked with people, people from around the world with difficult and dramatic stories. So, for the first time in my life, I decided to do something completely different.”
The idea behind his newest project, Maraviglia says, is to document the many ways in which humans try to create seemingly natural environments for their favorite captive creatures. For "Behind the Glass,” Maraviglia says he’s focused on photographing “places built for animals that may never see their natural environment.”
During his quest to capture photos for this series, Maraviglia felt an obligation to take his camera behind the scenes at the largest aquarium in his home country of Italy.
The scenes of tank washing and animal feeding that played out in front of Maraviglia’s camera in Genoa were in no way unique to this aquarium. To meet the animal welfare standards held by the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums, member aquariums such as the Aquarium of Genoa carefully monitor the physical and mental health of animals, as well as the environmental conditions inside enclosures.
Everything from the dissolved calcium content of the water to the physical health of their penguins is checked daily. These seemingly mundane tasks are essential to maintaining the wellbeing of captive animals, but few visitors are aware they’re happening. Claudia Gili, the aquarium’s senior veterinarian, says the public rarely gets to see this in action.
“[Visitors don’t see] the proper husbandry techniques that guarantee physical health and provide behavioral enrichments,” said Gili in an email. “Techniques have changed enormously over the years, as have the materials utilized.”
Recent advancements in animal husbandry emphasize the importance of providing captive animals with stimulating environments where they can do the same things that they would in the wild, Gili says.
“In general the most important thing is to make sure that the exhibit shows the key features represented in a particular environment and allows the animals to thrive in it for their entire lifespan,” she says.
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Aquariums like the one in Genoa try hard to create exhibits that serve the needs of visitors and inhabitants alike, but in some cases the two are mutually exclusive. (Read: “Tiger’s Death Raises Question: What Makes a Good Zoo?”) Take the Aquarium of Genoa’s dolphin exhibit; its modest size and barren interior makes it easy for visitors to view the bottlenose dolphins within, but it also makes the enclosure a far cry from the dolphins’ open ocean habitat.
Like many aquariums, the Aquarium of Genoa has been criticized by animal rights groups for keeping bottlenose dolphins in captivity, which critics believe is inhumane due to the animal’s superior intelligence and nomadic nature. (Watch: “Dolphins: Even Smarter Than You Thought.”)
The aquarium’s controversial decision to keep dolphins isn’t solely motivated by profit. Having dolphins so close at hand allows scientists to study their biology, physiology, and ethology in unprecedented detail, according to Gili.
The dolphins at the Aquarium of Genoa have aided scientists studying dolphin behavior, sleep, communication, and reproduction. The information gathered through these studies is openly shared with other zoos and aquariums.
The Genoa Aquarium Foundation. Acquario di Genova. Acquario di Genova has always been committed to the protection of nature and scientific dissemination . In fact, since 1992, the year of its opening, it has offered visitors the opportunity to get closer to the marine and aquatic world to get to know it, appreciate its inestimable value ...
The Aquarium of Genoa is the largest exhibition of aquatic biodiversity in Europe, with 70 tanks housing over 12,000 animals belonging to 600 species. The Aquarium of Genoa offers visitors the chance to discover underwater life in a journey among dolphins and sharks, penguins and manatees, jellyfish and seals, tropical fish and Antarctic animals.
The Aquarium of Genoa, located in the city’s historic center, is one of the largest and most spectacular aquariums in Europe and figures among the most highly regarded in the world. Housed in the renowned Porto Antico area, it has become a symbol of Genoa, stimulating tourism and being a must-see destination for anyone visiting Liguria.
