Editing London Zoo (section)

===The former Aquarium===
[[File:London Zoo, England -aquarium-24Oct2010.jpg|right|thumb|Aquarium]]
[[File:London Zoo 00936.jpg|thumb|right|A copperband butterflyfish in the coral reef hall]]
There was an [[aquarium]] at the zoo from 1853 until 2019. The zoo's first aquarium was also the world's first public aquarium,<ref name="aquarium-history">{{cite web | url = http://www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/exhibits/aquarium/the-history-of-the-aquarium,656,AR.html | title = The History of the Aquarium | publisher = [[Zoological Society of London|ZSL]] | access-date = 6 March 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120902231727/http://www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/exhibits/aquarium/the-history-of-the-aquarium,656,AR.html | archive-date = 2 September 2012 | url-status = dead }}</ref> and was created and stocked by [[Philip Henry Gosse]] who coined the word "aquarium", as a portmanteau of aquatic vivarium.<ref name="aquarium-history" /> In 1853 opened a building known as Fish House, while the most recent aquarium was built in 1921 next to and beneath the Mappin Terraces and was officially opened by [[George V of the United Kingdom|King George V]] and his wife [[Mary of Teck|Queen Mary]] in April 1924. The collection in 1853 included 58 fish species and 200 invertebrate species.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of London Zoo |url=https://www.londonzoo.org/zoo-stories/history-of-london-zoo/worlds-first-aquarium |access-date=28 February 2023 |website=ZSL London Zoo}}</ref>

The aquarium was separated into three halls, each home to different types of fish and other aquatic wildlife. The first hall primarily contained freshwater species such as [[rudd]] and [[European eel]]s, as well as some saltwater species involved in various conservation projects and captive-breeding programmes, such as [[broad sea fan]]s, [[uaru]]s and [[seahorse]]s. The second hall displayed various species of [[coral reef]] fish from around the world, such as [[clownfish]], [[copperband butterflyfish]] and [[regal tang]]s, as well as real coral. The third hall housed species native to the [[Amazon River]], including [[red-bellied piranha]]s, [[Pterophyllum|angelfish]], [[arapaima]]s and [[ocellate river stingray]]s. In addition to the three halls, the aquarium also featured the "Big Fish Tank". This tank housed large fish species that were all former pets. They had to be rescued because their owners did not have the proper equipment or understanding to care for them.

The dedicated [[London Aquarium]], unconnected with ZSL, opened in 1997. The Zoo's smaller aquarium closed on 22 October 2019; some of the aquatic creatures were moved to a new aquarium at Whipsnade Zoo, while others were set to be housed in a new corals exhibit in the [[#Tiny Giants|Tiny Giants]] building in 2020.<ref name="ZSL-22Oct2019">{{cite web |title=It's all change at the London Zoo aquarium |url=https://www.zsl.org/blogs/zsl-london-zoo/it%E2%80%99s-all-change-at-the-london-zoo-aquarium |website=ZSL London Zoo |publisher=ZSL |access-date=19 November 2019}}</ref>