Fresh from welcoming its 10 millionth visitor in June, Hull’s landmark attraction, The Deep, has just unveiled a brand-new habitat for visitors to experience this summer.
One of the most spectacular aquariums in the world, and home to 5,000 animals including sharks and rays, it has spent the last few months turning the previous ‘Amazon’ exhibit in to ‘The Wreck’ – creating a stunning new colourful display.
Telling the story of how artificial reefs can create thriving habitats for a variety of marine life, the new addition will form the focus of summer activity at the award-winning attraction and conservation charity.
Based around the USS Kittiwake shipwreck, which was intentionally sunk off the coast of Grand Cayman, ‘The Wreck’ exhibit is currently home to Lookdowns, a fish species found in the Western Atlantic Ocean that is attracted to sunken structures as ideal feeding spots.
And The Deep’s summer event, Wrecks & Reefs, will offers visitors the first chance to see the new habitat, as well as learn more about artificial reefs through a range of different hands-on activities for all ages.
Artificial reefs play a vital role in enhancing marine biodiversity, a topic The Deep has not explored before.
The strikingly designed building, overlooking the Humber estuary, is regarded as one of the most commercially successful Millennium projects in the UK, and has become an internationally recognised landmark – even featuring on a Royal Mail stamp in 2006.
Built on a former shipyard site it played a pivotal role in helping to revitalise and regenerate the city.
Breathing new life into the run-down Humber docks area as part of Hull’s wider revival as Yorkshire’s only maritime city, over the last 23 years the attraction has proved a hit not only with regular visitors, but also a favourite with group trips and educational visits.
Along with the chance to see the aquarium’s marine life – including the UK’s only pair of green sawfish and a colony of Gentoo penguins – The Deep operates as an education and conservation charity and in recent years has become an international player in marine conservation.
Standard admission tickets to The Deep cost £23 for adults and £17 children (3 to 15 years). Booking is recommended.
For more details, visit www.thedeep.co.uk
For all other tourism information about Hull, see www.visithull.org
