Mote Science Education Aquarium (SEA) — Attraction in Sarasota

Growing up in Sarasota, Mote Aquarium was a huge part of my childhood. From going with family & friends, school field trips to even having one of my school dances there. So obviously when I heard they were expanding excitement was an understatement. Unfortunately my expectations were too high.

First off some positives: -The building itself is beautiful and very unique to the area. It was nice to see some of the animals getting larger upgrades like the manatees. -Love the newest editions to Mote the penguins. I mean come on who doesn’t love penguins. -Expansion of food and snack options -Multiple interactive touch tanks -Friendly and nice staff (as always)

Now onto the not so positives… -A LOT of the animals from the previous location were not moved to this new one and no can get a clear answer if that will change in the future. No sea turtles, no giant eel, no molly the mollusk (dead preserved giant squid) just to name a few. These animals are the heart of Mote. -The location…. It is no secret that with the expansion of the UTC area traffic will keep getting congested. I understand wanting to bring in more people as we are a tourist state, but getting in and out is just ridiculous and won’t get better anytime soon. -This location specifically, NOT MOTE AS A WHOLE, doesn’t represent what Mote truly stands for at least what they claim to want to stand for and that isn’t education and research. It is pretty apparent this was built to appease the rich donors in the area (who just want their names on something of a good cause for attention but not actually believing in it or have any knowledge about). The amount of event and meeting rooms they built in this place is absolutely unnecessary.

Also the virtual reality chairs which now they have doubled. Isn’t the whole point of getting to see these animals in person and being interactive a better way to learn? If you are just going to get on a virtual reality chair might as well stay home and be on your iPad.

-And lastly this ain’t a huge deal but the ticketing process was a bit difficult. Everyone including the members had to reserve spots online before coming in however when purchasing and/or reserving your spot as a member the force you to donate a minimum of $5 to checkout. And if you are military yes you get discounted tickets but they must be purchased in person however that’s only if they have enough tickets left. You can only reserve spots if you have tickets which defeats the whole point if you are using military benefits.

In conclusion, the experience overall was very mid and disappointing. This is not the Mote I grew up and no longer excited to share with my loved ones.I hope Mote really takes into consideration all the complaints and finds solutions. In the meantime I will enjoy the remainder of my membership (get my money’s worth) and won’t be renewing again unless...

I’m really happy that Mote Aquarium finally opened the new facility—we’ve been waiting for a year. I immediately bought an annual membership, but unfortunately, I don’t feel it was worth it. The new building looks impressive, but I don’t think the overall exhibition space has increased; it might have even gotten smaller.

I feel that Mote has shifted much of its focus toward non-Florida aquatic species, which is a pity. I would love to see more exhibits featuring native Florida marine life instead of repeated displays of Pacific species. At the same time, the animal welfare standards seem to have declined rather than improved. Some tanks are overcrowded for certain fish species, causing them to fight, get injured, or even die.

In several tanks, I also noticed fish showing stereotypical behaviors and an excessive growth of low-grade algae on the rocks, likely due to an imbalance of nitrogen and phosphorus—which can be harmful to both fish and corals.

In the largest tank, I observed carnivorous fish constantly feeding on greenbacks. I hope those greenbacks were intentionally placed there as feeder fish, not as display fish. If they were meant to be display fish, it would suggest that Mote isn’t providing enough food for the predators. This issue didn’t exist in the old aquarium.

If this aquarium were located in an inland city, I would say it’s amazing. But this is Florida—a place with some of the most stunning marine life in the world. So why not showcase more of Florida’s native species, like spiny lobsters, instead of displaying king crabs from the Bering Sea and Dungeness crabs from California—and even keeping two species that would never coexist in nature together, which could easily lead to conflict?

I believe the aquarium should focus more on helping the next generation understand our local marine ecosystems, teaching them how to protect and responsibly use ocean resources. I just hope Mote stays true to its original mission—continuing to promote marine education and conservation, rather than becoming a purely...

The new aquarium is beautiful and we had a nice first visit - unfortunately there isn't much reason to ever go back. We really enjoyed the outdoor spaces, the penguins, and the new large tank on the ground floor. Some really stunning larger tanks and a few new species added. I do miss the ambiance of the old space though, the beach vibe/feel of "we've been established here a long time" is lost.

It also feels very small, much smaller than the old space. Definitely far fewer tanks, with all of the species intermingled in large tanks rather than allowing you to get up close and personal. I didn't notice any sea horses, the large lobsters, the fresh water sections, axolotls, snakes, nor many others from the old aquarium.

The touch tanks really miss the mark here for who I feel is the target audience though - KIDS (especially the sting ray and shark touch tanks). The shark tank is huge and not accessible from all sides so the sharks stayed out of touch range the duration of our visit - at the old aquarium they were accessible from all sides.

The stingray tank is horribly designed even for adults. The stingrays were continuously swimming by, but low in the tank. To touch them, I as an adult had reach my arm all the way past my shirt sleeve to reach. My 3 year old desperately wanted to touch them, but unfortunately she won't be able to reach until she is about 17 years old. The rocks added to the back should have been on the front side to bring them closer.

I feel like what was built was intended to have a few really visually stunning exhibits that people will pose for pictures with, post on social media, and generate additional foot traffic/revenue for MOTE. The education piece (what does the E in S.E.A. stand for again?) was really lost in...