SeaQuest (aquariums)

SeaQuest was established in 2015 by Vince Covino.[4] Prior to the launch of SeaQuest, along with his brother Ammon, founded Portland Aquarium in 2012 (closed 2016),[5] the Austin Aquarium in 2013[6] and the San Antonio Aquarium in 2014.[7]

SeaQuest opened its first location at Layton, Utah in 2016.[8] This location was followed by one in the Las Vegas area, which also opened in 2016 at The Boulevard Mall.[9] A third location opened in Fort Worth, Texas in 2017.[10]

SeaQuest provides an immersive experience for visitors by allowing guests to touch, feed, and interact with exotic birds, reptiles, mammals, and marine life through hands-on exhibits throughout the aquarium.[11] Although similar to its sister aquariums, SeaQuest locations are usually housed within shopping malls.

SeaQuest’s Littleton, Colorado location opened in June 2018.[12] SeaQuest went on to open its fifth location in Folsom in September 2018.[13][14] The company’s location at the Stonecrest Mall opened in 2021 and was the first step of a redevelopment project by Stonecrest Resorts.[15]

On June 2023, the Stonecrest, Georgia location permanently closed. A new aquarium is supposed to be taking over the location.[16] In August 2023, the Trumbull, Connecticut location permanently closed after years of animal welfare violations.[17]

SeaQuest employee with tegu.

As of 2023, SeaQuest currently has 8 locations across the United States.[3]

SeaQuest employee dressed as a mermaid.

SeaQuest organized an event in collaboration with Layton Communities That Care to support the prevention underage drinking.[23] In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, SeaQuest’s Stonecrest location also offered free COVID vaccinations.[24]^[[25] SeaQuest also organized an event for Georbrand Jackson, a 10-year-old who was injured in a drive-by shooting, in December 2021.[26][27]

SeaQuest has been subject to boycott and protests by animal-rights advocates such as PETA[28] and actor Alec Baldwin, who blocked an aquarium from being constructed on Long Island.[29] In addition, SeaQuest has been the subject of numerous violations and controversies at its various locations.[30]

Littleton, Colorado

• Colorado Parks and Wildlife suspended SeaQuest's exhibitor's license for two years due to an abundance of egregious violations related to the animals' welfare at the facility.[31]
• In 2019, a sloth named Flash was burned by a heat lamp on two occasions resulting in significant burns to its face.[32] The employee responsible for the animal's care was charged with cruelty-to-animals, but was found not guilty.[33]
• In 2018, Colorado Parks and Wildlife cited and fined SeaQuest for failing to report the death of a regulated kookaburra and issued warnings for the unlawful importation and possession of six wood ducks, unlawful importation of a caiman and wallaby, five counts of failing to report injuries to humans, and failing to report the deaths of 250 trout.[34]
• In 2018, SeaQuest failed a Colorado Department of Agriculture pre-license inspection. Issues included illegal transfer of koi fish, unsanitary conditions, and allowing visitors to walk through the aviary while birds were grounded, creating a precarious environment where the birds were vulnerable to being stepped on.[35]
• Additional events in 2018 included SeaQuest storing approximately 80 parakeets in an employee's garage after the company was ordered to shut down the interactive aviary,[36] and a state fine for SeaQuest's unlawful procurement of a two-toed sloth and failure to obtain an appropriate license for the animal.[37]
• Approximately 30 injuries involving animal-to-human bites were reported to occur between June 2018 and January 2019.[38]

A kid petting a snake at SeaQuest.