Expo Zaragoza 2008 :: Pavilions

This pavilion was designed for educational, research and dissemination purposes and is laid out as a journey through the natural landscape of five of the great rivers of the world. It is a journey through the galleries with themes depicting different stretches of the river (aquariums or aquarium-terrariums) accompanied by sounds that will recreate the different habitats and also a wide selection of representative fauna.

The pavilion represents the Nile, located in Northeast Africa and flowing into the Mediterranean sea through Uganda, Sudan and Egypt; the Amazon, the great river that crosses Peru, Colombia and Brazil; the Mekong, one of the biggest rivers in Asia that crosses China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam; the Darling, the longest river in Australia, and the Ebro, the most voluminous river in Spain.

The central theme of the River Aquarium will be the "World River" (a large tank located right in the middle of the building), which simulates the beginnings of the world. All of the rivers have something in common and establish, in this way, the relationship between the formation of the continents and freshwater.

The River Aquarium will be one of the facilities that the city of Zaragoza will be left with when the International Exposition ends and will contribute to tourism development in the city.

Visitors will take a virtual, linear and continuous journey through the biogeographic regions taking in all of the world’s rivers. The visitors will be the protagonists of the different ecosystem settings in a sensory experience resulting from the realism of the exhibition recreated with sounds, birdcalls, humidity and even fog.

The most important regions represented are: 

African Region– River Nilo

The journey through this region begins with the species of the great lakes of eastern Africa – one of the sources of the Nile. Halfway along is a beach with live crocodiles, and the journey ends with the species of the delta and an exhibition on the Mediterranean and the Red Sea.

In this area there will be a large range of bright freshwater fish such as African cichlids, catfish and elephant fish, plus examples of sea water fish such as groupers, wrasses, bream, moray eels, triggerfish, doctor fish and butterflyfish among many others.

Not only fish live in the waters of the Nile. Visitors will also discover typical reptiles of the region such as the great Nile crocodile, monitor lizards, long necked turtles, chameleons, etc.

Indomalayan Region – River Mekong

The abrupt mountain passes of the Himalayas are the first scene in this journey, with species from the upper course. A paddy field is the background for mid-river species, and a daylight garden of orchids gives way to the species from the lower course, the Pacific Ocean and coral reefs.

Terraces of large flooded paddy fields appear along the course of the River Mekong as it flows through Cambodia and Vietnam.

This river will be inhabited by freshwater fish such as barbels, bala sharks, clown loaches, gouramis, sheatfish, perch, knifefish, freshwater moray eels and arowanas, among other species.

Also in this region, visitors will find reptile species such as Chinese water dragons, leaf turtles, sailfin dragons, swamp snakes etc.

Neotropical Region - The Amazon

This area is divided into three zones; the first begins in El Ígapo, with a 400 m² room where typical species from these humid areas and river channels are displayed. The flooded Amazon jungle, with huge white-trunked coconut trees and mud-covered mangroves can be found in this area. There are also areas with colonies of giant water lilies.

The Amazon ecosystem will be inhabited with fish such as piranhas, pacus, cardinals, skate, fiddler’s crabs until you get to the Atlantic estuary of the river where you can discover balloonfish, pigfish, swordfish and many more.

Australian Region -The Darling-Murray River

Visitors begin their journey in the flooded regions and continue through desert areas and the middle course of the river system. In this region there are many reptiles and a large range of insects such as the spiny leaf insect, giant stick insect, water dragons, lizards, giant blue tongue skinks, tree frogs, Australian water python, etc.

Holarctic Region -The Ebro River

The biodiversity of the Ebro is represented in two areas: the mountain cave and the course of the river. The journey begins in a limestone cave with blind fish. Throughout the walkway the river’s vegetation will be very diverse: pine forests, beech trees, birch trees together with small bushes.

This region will be inhabited with trout, sturgeon, doctor fish, barbels, pikes, pumpkinseed and many otters. In the Mediterranean delta you will discover dogfish, grey mullets, scorpion fish and moray eels, etc.

The World River

Visitors will walk across the World River (central riverbed) four times to get to each ecosystem. It will hold freshwater species such as the impressive arapaimas, catfish and pacus.

The River Aquarium is located in the Eastern end of the site, near Avenida de Ranillas. It has a surface area of 7,850 m2 (with a height similar to three floors) and can hold up to 60 tanks.

The building’s conceptual idea takes the visitor back a few million years ago, when all the continents were united as a single island known as Pangaea. The River Aquarium is organised around a central space with a tank that simulates the Great River at the beginning of time, the World River, measuring 40 metres long. The layout of the building is a play on architectural space that simulates the dynamic and clear-cut nature of the struggle between the elements in the development of the continents and the importance of the water cycle in the formation of life.

The façades of the building represent rocky cliffs over which water falls. Visitors will enter through a glacier embedded between land and clay that decomposes owing to the heat and forms a pond on the roof, from which sea water will fall directly from the waterfalls.

In addition to the contents of the different and themed tanks, the building will include a series of other facilities: shop, projection room, cafeteria-restaurant, viewing terrace.

Post Expo, the River Aquarium will house a Research Centre, a Library and Laboratories where workshops will be given for visitors.

Álvaro Planchuelo. Architecture and nature.

The Álvaro Planchuelo architectural studio gathers together professionals from different activities to make up a cross-disciplinary team. They provide technical assistance through project design and management, principally working on unique structures linked to nature. In all their work, the studio gives priority to integrating the structures into the surroundings and to their environmental behaviour.

Their latest projects and works include: Mallorca and Gijón Aquariums, Cabañeros National Park Visitors’ Centre (Ciudad Real), Plasencia Exhibition & Congress Centre and multi-assisential building in the eastern area of Palma de Mallorca.

For further information go to: www.alvaroplanchuelo.com

Coutant Aquariums

The team in La Rochelle (France) has been the leading designers and manufacturers of public aquariums in Europe since 1960. They have made more than 50 public aquariums worldwide in locations such as Greece, Tunisia, England (Plymouth), Paris, Oceanopolis, Monaco, Nausicaä, Belgium, Holland, Polynesia, Caribbean, Indo-Pacific, Antibes etc..
In Spain, they have worked in the Zoo Aquarium Madrid, L’Aquàrium de Barcelona, L'Oceanogràfic in Valencia, The Aquarium of San Sebastián, Palma Aquarium in Mallorca and The Aquarium of Gijón among others.

The Aquarium La Rochelle has a surface area of 8,000 m² and contains 3 million litres of water. Every year it receives 850,000 visitors and another 120,000 school children.

For further information go to: www.groupe-coutant.com