One of more than 400 residents at the new Heart of the Sea tank at The Florida Aquarium. Credit: By Yinan Chen (www.goodfreephotos.com (gallery, image)) [Public Domain], via Wikimedia Commons

One of more than 400 residents at the new Heart of the Sea tank at The Florida Aquarium. Credit: By Yinan Chen (www.goodfreephotos.com (gallery, image)) [Public Domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Starting this Saturday, Oct. 6 visitors to the Florida Aquarium can see a new exhibit — Heart of the Sea. No, it's not from Titanic — that's the Heart of the Ocean. What the Florida Aquarium has is way cooler: a 100,000-gallon tank with more than 400 sea creatures. 

Marine life in Heart of the Sea includes bonnethead sharks, a nurse shark, southern stingrays, two endangered sea turtles, goliath grouper, tarpon, Spanish hogfish, rooster hogfish, squirrelfish, grunts and… you know what? You're gonna have to go see it to see 'em all.

Plus, the Florida Aquarium has set up cameras for better views and will have ways for people to interact with the marine life, including SCUBA diving and other animal encounters.


The Florida Aquarium, 701 Channelside Drive, Tampa | Opens Oct. 6

This article appears in Oct 4-11, 2018.

Cathy's portfolio includes pieces for Visit Florida, USA Today and regional and local press. In 2016, UPF published Backroads of Paradise, her travel narrative about retracing the WPA-era Florida driving...