Animal rights advocates are again calling for the Austin Aquarium to shut down. The new push comes after a high-level resignation at a company related to the aquarium — and years of controversy surrounding the strip mall-based aquarium.
The Austin Aquarium opened in late 2013 shortly after its founder, Ammon Covino, pleaded guilty to animal trafficking. The North Austin aquarium has since been cited by the United States Department of Agriculture, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. PETA called on the aquarium to close last weekend after the resignation of Vincent Covino, brother of Ammon and the CEO of SeaQuest, which runs similar operations in seven states.
SeaQuest did not respond to a request for comment on this story.
Christina Escobar with PETA said the aquarium hosts more than just marine wildlife. The aquarium advertises sloths, tortoises and lemurs as other animals inside the facility. Escobar said the close quarters where all the animals are kept and the wildlife “encounters” the aquarium offers have proved problematic.
“Anyone can touch these animals," she said. "So, they've actually been sued numerous times because some of the animals have attacked children and adults in these encounters."
The aquarium was sued in 2019 after a lemur bit a child in Austin, according to the Austin American-Statesman. Another woman recounted a similar lemur attack in May 2023 to KVUE. Customers at SeaQuest’s Fort Worth facility have also reportedly been bitten by a grouper and an iguana, and the USDA found multiple health and safety violations earlier this year.
SeaQuest is also under scrutiny in California for allegedly mistreating animals, prompting one member of the California Legislature to call for an investigation into the company's Sacramento aquarium. A congresswoman in Minnesota has also called for the USDA to pull the license of SeaQuest's Roseville facility in April after former employees detailed alleged violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
In June 2023, PETA members in Austin told the city's Animal Advisory Commission they documented dozens of violations at the Austin Aquarium while working undercover. The commission unanimously approved a measure to limit the public display of certain animals last July, but the Austin City Council has yet to act upon that recommendation.
Escobar said, in light of Vincent Covino's resignation and the mounting pressure on SeaQuest, she hopes the city revisits the idea of banning certain for-profit zoos and aquariums.
"Their profit is high and they still continue to neglect and abuse these animals," she said. "I just don't want it in my city. I think it's really ugly and, for a progressive city like Austin, disturbing."
Correction: This story has been updated to reflect SeaQuest is not the parent company of the Austin Aquarium.
