Swimming with Sobela: The Kansas City Zoo opened a new aquarium called “Sobela” in conservationist efforts

The Kansas City Zoo opened the Sobela Aquarium on Sept. 1. This new aquarium also added a new biosphere according to the KC Zoo CEO Sean Putney. 

The largest tank holds up to 350,000 gallons of water and nearly 8,000 animals from various aquatic habitats now inhabit that aquarium. This includes three injured animals: one sea turtle and two sea otters who are unable to survive in the wild. According to Putney, when setting up the exhibit the zoo looked for animals that wouldn’t survive in the wild due to injuries they sustained. 

According Putney, the new aquarium has opened with the hope of educating the greater KC Metropolitan area on the importance of aquatic biomes.

“It’s unique being here in the Midwest, there aren’t a lot of larger aquariums [here],” Putney said. “We wanted to make sure we had a different biome we could talk about to educate people about ecosystems and conservation efforts here in KC.” 

The zoo received the idea from one of their lead sponsors, the Helzberg family, in 2013. By 2015, faculty began to assess how the aquarium would be funded.In 2018, an architect from El Dorado Contracting Company provided an estimated timeline of two-and-a-half years to build the exhibit. COVID set the building process back 6-months, but construction continued in late 2020. 

While KC isn’t a coastal city, Putney believes that the zoo makes a larger impact through conservation education. 

“If people are having fun, hopefully they’ll receive the conservation message we’re hoping to convey,” Putney said

Putney isn’t the only person with high hopes for the aquarium. Environmental Education teacher Rusty Debey believes that the aquarium provides a new perspective for students on ecosystems.

“Just seeing the diversity of life is incredible,” Debey said, “Especially since we’ve only been able to explore 30% of the ocean.”

The exhibit features a multitude of aquatic animals. The main difference in the animals, however, is their health. Providing homes for injured animals is one way to spread awareness of humanity’s impact on aquatic life. 

“The sea turtle and the two sea otters are rescue animals that would’ve been euthanized had we not taken them in,” said Putney. “They’re like the spokespeople for their species, so they’re our spokes-animals.”

Putney is hoping that the aquarium spreads joy and education simultaneously by hosting field trips and giving guided tours.

“We hope that [the exhibit is] exciting and has a lasting impact on people,” said Putney.

Students in Debey’s classes have attended the new aquarium and to complete associated assignments and receive extra credit. Just as Putney hoped, the students have had only positive experiences of the exhibit so far according to Debey.

“[Students] can go to the aquariums just to learn more things, things that they’ll never see. And that’s the whole point of things is to get out and see those things that we just never see,” said Debey, “To just physically be there, to see the animals moving around, and living and breathing and doing their things is the coolest.”