19 Groups Urge Congress to Phase Out Captivity of Whales and Dolphins

​In a letter delivered to congressional leaders on Monday, July 20th, the International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute, Animal Welfare Institute (AWI), and 17 other animal protection and conservation groups urged lawmakers to require that any aquarium or marine theme park benefiting from COVID-19 emergency funds take steps to phase out the captivity of whales and dolphins.

The letter comes in response to a June request for emergency federal funding from the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and other industry groups. The groups are asking Congress to allocate more than $800 million in National Fish and Wildlife Foundation funds to help aquariums and zoos offset financial losses due to COVID-19 closures. Many of these facilities have already received funding under the CARES Act passed in March, according to media reports.

The animal protection and conservation groups have requested that any future COVID-19 funding be contingent on the aquariums agreeing to halt all cetacean imports from outside the United States (unless the import is in the cetacean’s best interest) and discontinuing captive breeding programs involving cetaceans. Since aquarium associations are opposed to releasing captive-born cetaceans in the wild, breeding more animals “makes no sense during this time of revenue decline,” according to the letter. Congress should instead encourage aquariums and the National Marine Fisheries Service to begin to retire captive cetaceans to seaside sanctuaries as they become operational.

“While we feel it appropriate for Congress to provide support to such institutions to help maintain the health and welfare of their animals,” the letter said, “we also feel such funding should come with restrictions on certain activities that are outdated and no longer acceptable for zoos and aquariums, and directly exacerbate the financial stressors these facilities are presently facing.”

Extensive peer-reviewed studies in recent years, in addition to the 2013 documentary “Blackfish,” have demonstrated that cetaceans suffer significant physical and mental health problems in captivity. Cetaceans are too intelligent, widely roaming, socially complex, and, in some cases, too big to be held in small concrete tanks to entertain the public. Many species die at an earlier age in captivity than they would in the wild and suffer from numerous stress-related infections, ulcers, broken teeth, aggression from tank mates, and more.

In the wild, orcas have never killed or seriously injured a human being. But captive orcas, frustrated and bored, have killed four people in aquariums, including three trainers, and have severely injured several more.

“Congress can help end the suffering of dolphins and whales in captivity by phasing out captivity,” stated Mark J. Palmer, Associate Director of IMMP. “There is no need for captive breeding of cetaceans, as it only produces more animals that are unlikely to survive in the wild. Imports from foreign countries deplete wild populations of cetaceans. It’s time to stop.”

Moreover, despite their assurances, zoos, aquariums, and marine theme parks that display cetaceans largely fail to provide essential or even accurate conservation or education resources.

”We do not oppose distributing relief funds during the pandemic to zoos and aquariums with captive cetaceans,” stated Dr. Naomi Rose, AWI’s marine mammal scientist. “The animals in these facilities must continue to be cared for, even while these attractions are closed to the public. But federal dollars should not go to facilities that insist on breeding more mouths to feed, especially when they can’t afford to feed the ones they have without taxpayer assistance.”

Read the full letter to Congress here.