-Photo Credit: The Long Island Aquarium

The Long Island Aquarium, based in Riverhead, has continued to maintain its incredible mission throughout the global pandemic.

At one time, its doors were closed due to government mandates, and a GoFundMe was set up to keep its important work going. Since then, it has reopened at a limited capacity. Despite the pandemic’s major setbacks, the animals still need to be taken care of and year-round maintenance must continue.

The aquarium was first opened in June of 2000 as Long Island’s premier marine life education facility. After a dry spell in New York state in which no new aquariums had been opened for 35 years, Long Island Aquarium sought to fill a local gap. The aquarium succeeded, attracting millions of New York residents to its doors over its two decades of operation.

The aquarium aims to teach families and students alike about marine life with an emphasis on environmental preservation. In order to cater to online learning situations in classrooms, field trip options have changed to remote learning opportunities taught by aquarium staff. They have programs that accommodate students from grades K-12.

There are also plenty of activities to be found for families and aquarium enthusiasts. These days, tickets must be purchased beforehand in order to meet limited capacity expectations. This can be done on their website or over the phone.

One of their most popular activities besides exploring the various exhibits is their Atlantis Explorer Tour Boat. Now at lower capacity due to COVID-19, the boat is an interactive, educational experience that takes one down the Peconic River and into Flanders Bay. Like much of their hands-on educational programs, this event is meant to highlight local wildlife and preservation efforts.

No aquarium is complete without the marine life that makes up its exhibits. Long Island Aquarium boasts impressive indoor and outdoor displays of varying animals, and not only aquatic ones. Expect to find among their more notable exhibits the “Lost Temple of Atlantis”, housing an impressive population of Japanese Macaques. According to the aquarium, these are “the northernmost species of nonhuman primate.”

When it comes to marine life, Long Island Aquarium is far from lacking. They host one of the largest coral reef exhibits in the Western hemisphere. A 30 foot-long, 20,000-gallon tank shows off massive amounts of coral variants as well as 800 types of fish and other marine life.

The aquarium allows private bookings as well as standard ticket purchasing. To support their important work, feel free to visit the aquarium’s GoFundMe. There is also much more to explore on their website.