[Yamagata] Tsuruoka City Kamo Aquarium: Home to the world's largest variety of jellyfish!

Tsuruoka City Kamo Aquarium is a municipal aquarium located in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture

Tsuruoka's world-famous dream aquarium

The aquarium boasts the world's largest variety of jellyfish on display and also offers other attractions such as seagull feeding shows.
In the jellyfish exhibit room, "Kuranetarium," the jellyfish float gently in the dim light, their tentacles performing mysterious movements, creating a beautiful and fantastical world.

Photo by Scott Edmunds – DSC_The main Jellyfish tank / Size-adapted.

At one point, the number of visitors plummeted, putting the aquarium in danger of closing. However, around 1999, they began a full-scale jellyfish exhibition, which proved popular, and the number of visitors began to increase.
In recent years, tourists have been visiting at a pace exceeding previous years, surpassing the all-time high of 220,000 visitors and setting a new annual record.

In 2001, the aquarium expanded its exhibit to 12 species, becoming the largest in Japan. After increasing the number of jellyfish kept and displayed, and creating a specialized exhibit room called "Jellyfish Aquarium," it became the world's largest jellyfish exhibit in 2005.
The green-glowing "Aequorea victoria" jellyfish, made famous by Osamu Shimomura's Nobel Prize win in 2008, is also a popular attraction.
In November of the same year, with advice from Osamu Shimomura, the aquarium conducted a public experiment and successfully made the "Aequorea victoria" glow green. This is
extremely rare, as jellyfish in aquariums rarely glow, and it was the first time this had happened in Japan.

At the aquarium's restaurant, you can enjoy a variety of dishes made with jellyfish.
Kamo Aquarium is famous for its jellyfish ice cream, making it a truly unique aquarium dedicated to jellyfish.

In 2014, ahead of its 50th anniversary, Kamo Aquarium underwent a major renovation and relocated to a newly constructed facility. On June 1st of the same year, Kamo Aquarium reopened for business after a six-month hiatus. Reborn
as the "Jellyfish Dream Hall," the new aquarium boasts 1.6 times more exhibition space, allowing visitors to see many fish and 50 different species of jellyfish up close.
The highlight of the renovated aquarium is a 5-meter diameter tank where 2,000 jellyfish dance, immersing visitors in a fantastical world.

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