Soon enough the Maine State Aquarium will be filled with some of the stranger species from the Gulf of Maine.

But until then it will be work on display.

On April 20, a dozen volunteers filled the tanks in the aquarium and began the arduous task of setting up the displays for the incoming animals. The aquarium will open over Memorial Day weekend.

Each year, the aquarium is a bit different because new people step in and construct the displays, Aquarium Manager Aimee Hayden-Roderiques said.

“We have to take it down and put it up every year,” she said. “What we want people to see is something that's representative of what you would see out there.”

Most of the work involved bringing in and stacking rocks, spreading gravel and stringing mesh to be placed at the bottom of the tanks.

Special consideration was needed for different species and displays; for example, more sand was spread out for young animals and skates to ensure the animals wouldn't be injured.

Other displays were set-up to properly reflect the environment they were emulating; the “Down East” display has a granite wall, the debris tank has a discarded tire and other trash and the under the dock display has pylons caked with mussels.

Other displays went up but will need to be tweaked to accommodate the animals. The tanks where lobsters are housed needs to strike a balance between allowing the animals to be seen by the public while offering up holes for the lobsters to escape to.

The first step in that process was Saturday, where numerous college students and volunteers lugged heavy rocks into cramped spaces and manicuring sand and gravel like miniature zen gardens.

Soon, their hard work will pay off, when the tanks house native Gulf of Maine species and the instruments of construction are replaced with visitors.

To that end, the next step has started.

During the winter months, several species are kept on hand at the aquarium, while other species are released back into the water. More and more species still are shipped to schools, so the aquarium will be looking for some new tenants.

“We have crates set up at the dock and on Burnt Island, so any fishermen who catches something interesting can leave it there,” Hayden-Rodriques said.

Rare species caught in traps, like blobfish, sea ravens, sea robins, stripers, pollock, goosefish and cod are welcome to try out the new digs at the aquarium, Hayden-Rodriques said.

Ben Bulkeley can be reached at 207-633-4620 or bbulkeley@boothbayregister.com. Follow him on Twitter: @BBRegisterBen.