Sea Life Koenigswinter
The Sea Life Center is one of eight Sea Life centers in Germany. It was opened on December 3, 2005 on the promenade of the city of Königswinter . In 36 pools and aquariums, 2000 sea creatures from more than 120 species are presented on 2000 square meters.
organization
As for all other facilities in the Sea Life chain, the operator is Merlin Entertainments Group Ltd. The German aquariums are subordinate to the intermediary Sea Life Deutschland GmbH. It has appointed a General Manager to be responsible for both Königswinter and the other centers . Sea Life in Königswinter employs 10 permanent employees and at peak times up to 60 part-time employees and temporary workers.
exhibition
The visitors, supported by audio media and employees of the aquarium, are guided on a fixed tour through the individual areas, which takes about 1–2 hours, depending on the individual schedule. The overarching theme , supported locally by the Nibelungen saga located in the nearby Siebengebirge and on the Rhine , is the path of life across the river from its source to its mouth in the North Sea and from there across the Atlantic into the depths of the oceans.
Mountain stream
This area is modeled on the source river of the Vorderrhein in the Swiss Alps, which is a mountain stream in this region. An illuminated waterfall falls into a pool with trout , char and perch .
Rhine with Nibelungen treasure
In this area, the fauna of the Middle Rhine flowing close by is recreated. In addition to rudd , perch and tench , catfish , barbel and other river dwellers can also be seen.
In the further course of the circular route, the scenes of the Nibelungen saga are recreated, which is retold in brief sentences on information boards. The great dragon Fafner , which Siegfried killed, is also recreated, as is the treasure hidden by Alberich between illuminated rocks . In between there are several pools with small and reptile animals . Two of them are allowed to touch small creatures such as starfish , sea urchins and mussels under the supervision of an employee who makes explanations and answers questions . This is a special attraction, especially for children.
Gateway to Atlantis
The next topic of the tour is the transition from the river to the sea, opened at the entrance to the legendary city of Atlantis . Several aquariums with seahorses open this area.
Sea Life has been operating a rearing and research station in Weymouth, UK, since 1995 for these small animals, which are primarily native to Southwest Australia, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia. Their habitats in the seagrass are reproduced in the basins.
There is also a small cinema in this section, in which a film about sharks is shown in an endless loop . The aim of this documentary is to put the fears fueled by the blockbuster cinema in the 1970s ( The Jaws ) into perspective, combined with a campaign against shark hunting, shark finning and the marketing of animals as part of adventure tourism.
Captain Nemo's realm
The deep sea is the theme of this area, as suggested by the protagonist of the novel 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne . Moray eels , large jellyfish , octopus and other deep-sea creatures are shown in several aquariums .
Depths of the atlantic ocean
The main attraction here is the ten meter long 360 ° acrylic glass tunnel, the only one of its kind in Germany, which leads through the middle of a shark tank. Besides dogfish and smooth sharks swim gurnard , groupers , sea wolves , pouting and bream on both sides around the flow of visitors and below him away.
The ghost ship
At the end of the tour that is ghost ship the Flying Dutchman rebuilt; this legend is not based on the Rhine, but thanks to Richard Wagner , who dealt with this theme in his opera, the circle closes to the Ring des Nibelungen and thus back to the local accompanying theme "Rhine". From the hatch of the Dutch ship, the visitor looks at a basin with rays . If you leave the ship for the exit, the animals can be observed very closely in the open pool and stick their heads out of the water, but must not be touched. A Sea Life Center representative is also available in this area to answer questions.
Animal welfare campaigns
The sea-life concept sees itself as an instrument of active animal protection . To this end, the company's own marine protection program, SOS Conservation and Rescue, was launched in 2000 , which is close to Greenpeace ; the emergency signal acronym SOS stands for the appeal Save our Seas .
At the end of the tour in the documentation room in Königswinter, visitors will find out about calls for donations and signatures, among other things for the campaigns
- against shark finning,
- against the killing of seahorses in Asian coastal waters for the purpose of using extracts in traditional Chinese medicine ,
- against general overfishing of the oceans and
- to save the sea turtles on the Greek island of Zakynthos .
reception
Before construction began in 2005, the Sea Life Center was particularly criticized by local residents because it was built on one of the few remaining green spaces in Königswinter's old town - Berliner Platz, designed in 1956/57, on the site of the Berliner Hof Hotel , which was destroyed in the war . Several protest actions as well as collections of signatures from the residents who requested a different location were ultimately unsuccessful when it was determined that there was no legal basis for a public petition against an ongoing building planning process .
According to regional press reports, one year after the opening, the operators and the city of Königswinter were very satisfied with the number of visitors, which totaled 400,000 for 2006 and 2,500 on peak days. In addition to the special attractions such as shark feeding, many onlookers come to Sea Life Königswinter.
Against the background of declining visitor numbers at the classic Drachenfels tourist attractions with cogwheel train and donkey rides - in the past particularly popular with the Dutch - the city of Königswinter expects more contemporary leisure activities, especially for families with children, with the opening of the Sea Life Center.
swell
Sea Life Koenigswinter . Ambassador of the seas. In-house information brochure.
- Citizens' protests during the construction : the daily newspaper from January 18, 2005
- Summary after one year : General-Anzeiger (Bonn) of December 1, 2006
- Interview with the manager : Kölnische Rundschau from January 16, 2007
- WDR television , local time , broadcasts on July 3 and December 8, 2007
- Kingdom of the Mermaid : Report on the special exhibition from February 2010
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ursel and Jürgen Zänker: Building in Bonn room 49-69. Attempt to take stock . In: Landschaftsverband Rheinland (Hrsg.): Art and antiquity on the Rhine . Guide to the Rheinisches Landesmuseum Bonn . No. 21 . Rheinland-Verlag, Düsseldorf 1969, p. 210/211 .
Coordinates: 50 ° 40 ′ 24 ″ N , 7 ° 11 ′ 33 ″ E