More than 100 animals have found a new home at the Denver Zoo after being rescued from the recently closed SeaQuest interactive aquarium in southern unincorporated Jefferson County.
SeaQuest closed Feb. 4 after being the subject of numerous citations, investigations over customer injuries and animal welfare complaints since it opened in the Southwest Plaza mall in 2018. The Denver Zoo, along with Downtown Aquarium Denver, led efforts over the past week to monitor, evaluate and place the animals, zoo officials said Friday in a news release, and the Zoo took in nearly 130 animals.
Many of the animals — which included a keel-billed toucan, red-necked wallabies, African pancake tortoises and a New Guinea blue-tongued skink — are new species to the Denver Zoo.
“We have a number of rescued animals living here at the Zoo and take the responsibility of bringing in these animals very seriously,” said Bert Vescolani, president and CEO of Denver Zoo. “We’re fortunate to have the space, resources, and animal health and care expertise to provide the best possible care for these animals, and happy we could assist in this coordinated effort to give them a great new home.”
The animals are getting acquainted with their new habitats behind the scenes at the Zoo’s Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Animal Hospital and Tropical Discovery, according to the news release, and the new additions will be viewable to guests and members soon.
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Updated 2:18 p.m. Feb. 22, 2024: This article was corrected to note that SeaQuest Littleton was in unincorporated southern Jefferson County.
