BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – At Brevard Zoo’s existing Indian River Lagoon aquarium exhibit, guests can watch snook, tarpon, redfish and southern stingrays moving through a 17,000-gallon habitat. For Chief Zoological Officer Jon Brangan, though, that display is only a hint of the much larger aquatic experience now taking shape.
“This is going to be a unique shark experience that you have probably not seen at other aquariums,” Brangan said.
At the heart of the planned Bowen Aquarium will be a massive outdoor bull shark habitat measuring more than 100 feet in length and containing more than 168,000 gallons of water. That is nearly 10 times larger than Brevard Zoo’s current aquarium exhibit. Nearby, a second shark environment known as “Shark Flats” will span close to 100 feet and hold 126,000 gallons.
Brangan said the decision to build the shark habitats outdoors is one of the features that will make Bowen Aquarium stand out from most aquariums in the United States. “Most aquarium shark habitats are all inside,” he said. “We’re going to be outside.”
The bull shark habitat is expected to be the first of its kind in Florida and only the second in the country. “We will be the only one with bull sharks,” Brangan said. “There are only two facilities in the U.S. that have bull sharks. We will be the second one.”
Just across the walkway, Shark Flats will showcase several shark species commonly associated with Florida waters, including blacktip sharks, nurse sharks and bonnethead sharks. The exhibit will also include other native fish species, giving visitors a broader look at the region’s marine life.
“You will have acrylic panels on both sides of you where you will be immersed in the experience, able to see sharks swimming on both sides of you,” Brangan said. “You’ll be able to see below the water and above the water.”
The habitats will include a range of depths, from shallow areas of about 24 to 30 inches to deeper sections exceeding eight feet, giving the sharks room to navigate naturally through different levels of the water column.
Every element of Bowen Aquarium will be designed around the local environment. The aquarium’s storyline takes guests on a journey from the Atlantic Ocean, through Port Canaveral and into the Indian River Lagoon, ending at the St. John’s River.
“The theme of the new aquarium is all the waters around Brevard County,” Brangan said. “We’re going to be telling everybody about Brevard County and the waters of Brevard County and how important they are.”
Brangan said visitors may be surprised by what they see. “You’re not going to see exotic species from other countries,” he said. “You’re going to see what lives here. And I think people are going to be amazed when they see some of the fish and have no idea that they’re here.”
The closest model for Bowen Aquarium is California’s Monterey Bay Aquarium, which is built entirely around a local, regional theme. “They are the other aquarium that has an all-local theme around Monterey Bay,” Brangan said.
The aquarium experience will extend well beyond the shark habitats. Guests can expect a stingray habitat where they can wade in 10-inch-deep water and hand-feed rays, plus exhibits featuring alligators and otters themed around the St. John’s River.
Bowen Aquarium will also serve as a second campus for Brevard Zoo’s sea turtle rehabilitation program — a program that has operated for 12 years, largely out of public view. “No one gets to see it,” Brangan said. “But at the aquarium, they’re going to get to see it and see the massive amount of care that we provide to sea turtles every day.”
The campus will also include a building themed around the locks at Port Canaveral, housing fish species commonly found in and around the lock. Kids’ play spaces, food, gift areas and a second-story event space with views of Port Canaveral will round out the experience — including what Brangan described as a “primo rocket launch location.”
Bowen Aquarium will occupy a 14-acre site on Port Canaveral property bordering the Banana River, located just off State Road 528. The campus will feature 10 buildings, some dedicated to the filtration systems required to maintain the large habitats, along with heavy landscaping designed to mirror the natural look and feel of natural Florida.
“We’re going to have a very extensive planting plan to fully build out the site, and we want it to look like it’s been growing there for years when we open the doors,” Brangan said.
The Banana River will serve as a visible backdrop, with overwater docks extending out over the water and restored mangrove shorelines framing the views. The aquarium is accessible by land only.
On peak days, the aquarium is expected to welcome thousands of visitors, drawing from local residents, beachside tourists and travelers passing through Port Canaveral for cruises.
The idea for Bowen Aquarium dates back roughly 10 years, coinciding with early conversations around the Save Our Indian River Lagoon tax initiative. Brevard Zoo signed an agreement with Port Canaveral in 2021, and since then the project has moved through years of design, permitting and fundraising.
“We have been discussing this for really about 10 years when the idea came up,” Brangan said.
Keith Winston, CEO and president of the East Coast Zoological Society, the organization behind Brevard Zoo, said the project has reached a critical milestone. The zoo announced a groundbreaking date of Dec. 2 of this year, with construction expected to last 26 to 30 months.
“We’re breaking ground. We’re going to build this,” Brangan said.
As of now, the aquarium has raised more than $80 million toward its fundraising goal, and Winston said financing is on track. “We have all our planning figured out on how to close the gaps, how to cover things, so that we can go ahead and go to construction,” Brangan said.
Education and conservation are built into the aquarium’s foundation. Brangan pointed to Brevard Zoo’s ongoing Restore Our Shores program, which conducts oyster, clam, seagrass and mangrove restoration work in the Indian River Lagoon almost daily.
“We are very active here at the zoo at cleaning up the Indian River Lagoon,” he said. “We want to get the word out as we make progress at improving our own waters here.”
When the aquarium opens, a portion of every admission ticket will be directed to the National Estuary Program to support ongoing restoration efforts. “Part of everyone’s admission is going to go to the National Estuary Program,” Brangan said. “And we will help them establish a regular fund to help them progress their work, which also happens here in Brevard County.”
The road to groundbreaking has not been without hurdles. In late June, aquarium leaders were informed that Port Canaveral has plans to construct an overpass at the intersection near the aquarium site, a Port Canaveral project that would cross through the aquarium’s parking lot.
Winston said the project team presented an update to the Port Commission and is confident the two construction efforts can move forward together. “We’re confident we can work hand in hand with the port in terms of logistics and design to get both projects done in a way that in the end will have a great aquarium and better traffic,” Winston said.
Rather than viewing the overpass as purely a setback, Winston said the team is already exploring ways to incorporate it into the guest experience. “This aquarium is all about local habitats,” he said. “As you enter and approach the building, you go through these sand dunes so theoretically, the parking lot is the ocean.”
Winston said the team has asked Port Canaveral to paint the underside of the overpass blue, turning the structure into the opening chapter of the aquarium’s storytelling experience. “We can use it to start the story and tell people you’re coming from the ocean, from the Atlantic Ocean, through the dunes into the aquarium,” he said.
Those interested in following the project’s progress can visit Bowen Aquarium’s website or follow the organization on social media for construction updates and information on founding membership opportunities.
