Shirahama Aquarium, Kyoto University: Contributing to community education through exhibits of diverse marine life

Shirahama Aquarium is an aquarium operated by Kyoto University in Shirahama, a town on the Pacific coast of southwestern Wakayama Prefecture in an area known as Nanki. The ocean near Shirahama features unique biota, owing to a branch of the Kuroshio Current that flows into it, as well as familiar features of Japan’s coastal seabed environment, such as bedrock, pebbles, sand and mud.
The Aquarium boasts a superb collection of the diverse biota that inhabit the seas of Nanki. Particularly outstanding are the exhibits of marine invertebrates such as coral, seashells, sea urchins, starfish, sea cucumbers, shrimps and crabs. To convey clearly differences in aspects such as animals’ bodily structure and the diversity of species and modes of life, exhibits are divided by categories such as taxon and habitat. The Aquarium is the third oldest aquarium in operation in Japan today, having opened in 1930; in 2020 the Aquarium celebrated its 90th year of service. Shirahama Aquarium aims to continue to serve as a forum for lifelong education, including not only university education but also community education and a wide range of school educational activities.