TurkuaZoo was built over the course of six months by a firm from New Zealand. Speaking to the Anatolia news agency, TurkuaZoo Marketing and Communications Manager Gülnur İnkaya said the aquarium aimed to develop knowledge about life in the oceans and the importance of conservation in children. To accomplish this educational goal, 35-minute workshops at the aquarium designed for children are in the works.TurkuaZoo hosts fresh and saltwater fish, tropical fish, five shark species and an endangered type of grouper. İnkaya noted that TurkuaZoo's construction was funded by a 17-million-euro investment by multinational firm Global Aquarium, whose Turkey branch is İstanbul Water World. A seven-person team of divers works to regularly clean the aquarium and to feed the sharks, some of them by hand and some by throwing feed into the water. Contrary to what is commonly thought, the sharks are not vicious and divers do not have any problems feeding them, İnkaya said, also noting that nearly 100 kilograms of feed is used by the aquarium each day.
Admission prices to TurkuaZoo are TL 25, with tickets available at TL 18 for students and seniors over the age of 65. Admission is free for children under 4. With the special tunnels that are part of the aquarium, viewers get a 270-degree view of the tank -- “as if you are swimming along with them.” TurkuaZoo is home to over 10,000 sea creatures and hosts one of the world's longest underground tunnels, at 80 meters in length.
