The Shedd Aquarium has nursed a 10-week-old orphaned sea otter back to health. See photos and video of the baby Cayucos. more ›

Urban Union and Bread & Wine open, Fish Bar supports the Shedd, Southport Grocery & Cafe offers a pancake deal, and SmallBar Fullerton taps four casks on Friday. more ›

The 25-year-old beluga whale had been at the Shedd since 1989 when the oceanarium opened. more ›

It's been a while since we were last there so we took a field trip to the Shedd Aquarium on Monday. We wanted to see what kind of crowds would come out for the kick-off of the museum's community discount week and the offer of free general admission to all comers, and we finally wanted to check out the much buzzed about Jellies special exhibit. more ›

Last night, the Shedd Aquarium teamed up with Chefs Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris of Prairie Fire to teach diners about sustainable seafood. While there is something a bit counter-intuitive about an aquarium teaching people how to eat their charges, this education is important, as consumers have a real ability to impact the health of the oceans. Best of all, you can learn while eating some darn good food. Join us for a belated World Oceans Day and learn what you can do. more ›

The Shedd Aquarium is also jumping on the free admission train in January. They'll be offering free general admission from Jan. 16 - 21. For that, you can thank Ford Motor Company, as they're sponsoring the free week. more ›

Although birds aren't exactly the first thing one thinks of when visiting the Shedd Aquarium, since 2004 the aquarium has slowly been adding birds of prey to its collection. Now a group of predator birds--four red-tailed hawks and two owls--that were wounded in the wild, are the stars of a new air show at the Shedd. Maggie Fahner, the Shedd's animal program collection manager, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the birds of prey paint a more complete picture of a water ecosystem. "These animals naturally gravitate towards clean water sources," Fahner said to the Sun-Times. "And birds of prey like to fish." more ›

Nuka, a 21-year-old northern sea otter that was brought to the Shedd Aquarium as a baby after being rescued from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska has died. Nuka died on Thursday at the Seattle Aquarium, where she had been since 2001 after an exchange that resulted in a male otter being brought to the Chicago museum. Aquarium officials decided to euthanize Nuka, as her health had been declining for months. The average lifespan for female otters is 15 to 20 years. [Chicago Sun-Times]. more ›

And now for some good news: the city's museums saw a seven percent increase in 2009 over 2008 as 14.8 million people visited 14 Chicago-area museums and zoos in 2009. Tops was the Shedd Aquarium - which got a bounce from its revamped Oceanarium - with 1.9 million visitors. The Art Institute saw a huge bounce of 32 percent for a total of 1.8 million visitors, the new Modern Wing overcoming any negative reaction to the new admission fee hike. And the MSI, which also had a small admissions hike, had 1.6 million visitors, buoyed by the Harry Potter and You! exhibits. The Field Museum was the other museum to break the million visitor barrier with 1.3 million. Meanwhile, according to the Museums in the Park press release, the Lincoln Park Zoo welcomed an estimated 3 million visitors while the Brookfield Zoo had 2.2 million visitors. [CBS 2] more ›

Been wanting to head to the Shedd but having a hard time swallowing the (gulp) $24.95 price tag? Today and tomorrow, Shedd general admission is free with discounted rates for certain special exhibits. The free days include admission to the exhibits Amazon Rising and Caribbean Reef, so if today’s high temp of 32° is too chilly for you, you can always head south. more ›

Some joyful news from the Shedd Aquarium where two beluga whales, 23-year-old Puiji and 20-year-old Naya, are each pregnant with baby belugas. Fellow beluga whale Naluark made like Shawn Kemp and is responsible for both pregnancies. It's only a matter of time before Kirk and Spock swipe all three for the benefit of mankind's future. [Tribune] more ›

Since 1991, the Oceanarium at the Shedd aquarium has been entertaining us with it's unique blend of an indoor-outdoor environment, cute sea mammals and a gorgeous view of the lake. Since September, visitors to the Shedd have found the Oceanarium closed and undergoing a massive renovation. The Oceanarium is schedule to re-open in May, and we got a sneak peak inside. Some of these photos are current construction photos, while others are renderings of what the interior will look like when work is finished. Some of new features will include: more ›

The Shedd Aquarium, as part of their Community Discount Days, is offering free admission for the rest of this week! From February 16th through the 20th, visitors get in to the main exhibit galleries free . Entrance to the Wild Reef exhibit (which is excellent, by the way) is available at a discounted rate. We're guessing that the Shedd might be trying to drive up their attendance, since the Oceanarium is closed until June of this year. In combination with the Art Institute letting visitors in for free every day in February, it’s a very good month for museum-goers on a budget. more ›

In spite of the current recession, Chicago's museums are still managing to bring in a healthy number people. Total attendance in 2008 at the city's top 10 "major cultural attractions" was only off by one percent for a total of 7.7 million. The Shedd Aquarium saw a drop of seven percent, but was still had the highest overall attendance at 1.9 million; The Museum of Science & Industry had a larger drop at 15 percent, but was second overall with 1.4 million. In spite of these drops, the eight other attractions saw increases. The Art Institute of Chicago drew 1.4 million for third place overall and the Chicago History Museum saw a healthy 22 percent increase in visitors for a total of 266,000. The overall attendance on "free days" also saw a hefty increase of over 15 percent. more ›

Another reason to never go swimming in any body of water in the area: Joliet's D.J. Johnston caught what may be a red-bellied piranha while fishing in the Des Plaines River last week. An expert at the Shedd Aquarium, who studied a photograph of the fish, agreed the fish is likely a piranha as Johnston claims the fish has pointed teeth. Shedd spokeswoman Melissa Kruth says the fish was likely a pet that was liberated by an irresponsible pet owner. "It was probably in someone's aquarium and they let it go...It makes an invasive species. It's bad." Thanks for making us feel better, Melissa. Seriously. We're not ones to get paranoid, but we remember that segment from Planet Earth all too well and piranhas (like the Wu-Tang Clan) ain't nothin' to fuck with. Don't believe us? Check this out (not for the faint of heart). more ›

Happy Birthday, Cynthia! more ›

This simulated vintage poster, inspired by the Shedd Aqarium, is an original design by the artist and is the first in a planned series that will include the Field Museum and the Adler Planetarium. Created here in Chicago, elements of the piece are hand-applied on canvas panel board, fashioned and textured with layered strips of antique paper to give it its old-timey feel. Want it? Buy it! more ›

The Shedd Aquarium announced to day it has completed a successful transfer of seven whales and four dolphins to the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration in Connecticut. The reason for the move was to prepare the Shedd for a renovation of its Oceanarium. The whales will eventually be integrated into Mystic's existing whale exhibit. “We are pleased that all of our animals are in excellent health and are quickly adjusting to their new temporary surroundings,’’ said Ken Ramirez, senior vice president of animal collections and animal training at the Shedd. The Shedd also sent 12 staff members to Connecticut to help care for the whales and dolphins, who spent most of the trip comfortably on a FedEx plane. No word on if the staff members were shipped overnight or 2-day. more ›

The Shedd Aquarium is closed until Friday so museum staff can "polish new programs, reconfigure guest amenities and make final preparations for the Oceanarium renovation." Fans of aquatic life probably recall that the Oceanarium will remain OOC for the next nine months or so, but the aquarium will reopen September 5, and general admission will be free through September 9. Time to conquer my fear of fish! Just kidding, I'll never get over that. [Shedd] more ›

Who would have thunk the Shedd Aquarium could be seen as a viable jazz venue, but it becomes one every summer due to its annual Jazzin’ at the Shedd program. Every Thursday, local jazz bands play on Shedd’s north terrace and inside at the Caribbean Reef, providing a musical backdrop for the museum’s fishy splendors*. Drinks and snacks are also available for purchase. more ›

North Carolinian experimental indie kids Annuals are on nature kick as they tour in support of their major label debut EP, Wet Zoo (Sony/Canvasback). The youngsters' catchy brand of loud-soft, organic-synthetic exuberance made them blog darlings in the Internet-fruitful musical year of 2006, and Annuals' exploration of the weird trappings of youth through a blend of rural-ish folk-pop and symphonic studio bombast continues on Wet Zoo. more ›

Drew Peterson urned himself in on felony weapons charges today. He's been charged with knowingly possessing a rifle whose barrel is less than 16 inches long, which is illegal, but Peterson's lawyer says Peterson was a cop at the time the gun was seized, and police weapons are exempt from the law. Police seized 11 of Peterson's guns back in November, so the lag in arrest time is "suspicious," according to Joel Brodsky, Peterson's lawyer. [S-T] more ›

We've never been huge fans of the phrase “Chicago has two seasons: winter and construction." We prefer to think of it as winter and awesome or winter and street-festivals, but we also can’t help but agree. more ›

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The Shedd Aquarium is free through Friday, and Chicagoist can’t think of a more mesmerizing place to take your kids. more ›

Two weeks ago, in what was considered a rare act of humility, Japanese Emperor Akihito apologized to his countrymen, taking responsibility for a bluegill infestation that's wreaked havoc on Japan's ecosystem by bringing home a pair of the fish from a trip to the States nearly fifty years ago. "Bluegills are the ones I brought back from the U.S. some 50 years ago and donated to a Fisheries Agency research institute", Akihito said. "In those... more ›

Busy day for local museums: the Field Museum is raising its admissions prices, and the Shedd Aquarium is looking to expand its office space. Adler Planetarium? Anything? No? Shedd officials say their 300 employees are cramped, thus an additional 24,000 square feet of workspace, plus "a ground level terrace on the north side of the structure, build another elevator and upgrade its food-service kitchen." The proposed addition apparently wouldn't really affect how the Oceanarium... more ›

No repartee this week, all business. - We've received e-mails from concerned people and had to check it out for ourselves, and it looks as though Cereality at 110 South Wacker has closed down, only a couple years after Chicagoist (among other media) made a big fuss about its opening. There's even a "For Rent" sign in its front window. This kind of reaffirms our faith in the human race; if people won't pay $4.50... more ›

The Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation in Uptown was robbed late Friday of computers, audio-visual equipment and donated food on Friday. This is just one of several crimes committed at the synagogue in the last year. We're not sure how we feel about this ... Wendy's International will begin selling breakfast in Chicago, part of a national expansion into the breakfast market, the Dublin, Ohio-based hamburger chain said last week. Steve Irwin is helping... more ›