Sioux Falls Zoo & Aquarium’s Eastern Shores Touch Pool is evolving into a view-only exhibit, as of October 1, 2025.

However, we know that Eastern Shores and our horseshoe crabs are beloved by our guests, so we want to create an opportunity for visitors to participate in a touch experience during the month of September.

Eastern Shores touch hours are Thursday-Sunday from 10 am to 1 pm. Sunday, September 28 will be the final day of the touch experience.

How did we make this decision?

Earlier this summer, the horseshoe crabs were provided with medical treatment that led to the temporary closure of the touch experience, as a precaution for human and animal safety. During this time, SFZA took the opportunity to step back and reevaluate the long-term viability of the exhibit as a staffed touch pool.

Staff supervision is necessary, per the USDA, at exhibits where touching an animal is possible. SFZA has experienced ongoing part-time staffing challenges, and we know that touching can cause stress and other wellbeing concerns for the animals over time, so the decision was made to transition to a view-only exhibit.

What’s next?

Our horseshoe crabs will continue to call Eastern Shores home, in addition to more fish, sea star, whelk, and urchin species. For a better viewing experience, the current dark netting will be replaced with plexiglass.

The SFZA team will continue to work on ways our visitors can interact with our animals and exhibits – including daily ambassador animal encounters at 11 am and 2 pm.