The Sad Death of Kiska, the World’s Loneliest Orca

By Mark J. Palmer

The last captive orca in Canada succumbed to a bacterial infection and died on March 10th in Canada’s notorious MarineLand amusement park. Activists have protested conditions at MarineLand in Niagara Falls for decades.

Kiska’s story is truly horrendous. For the past twelve years she was kept alone, most of that time in a warehouse without access to the outdoors. She wound up finally in an outside tank, but without any companions.

Orcas, like most dolphins, are not solitary animals – they thrive in extended families with their mothers, brothers and sisters for most of their lives. Keeping Kiska in solitary confinement was especially cruel.

Kiska was torn from her family in Iceland in 1979. She briefly shared a tank with Keiko, the orca star of the hit movie Free Willy. Keiko was sold to Mexico’s Reino Adventura, and eventually the International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute rehabilitated and returned Keiko to his Icelandic waters, the first and only return of a captive orca to the wild.

For more on Keiko, go here.

Kiska gave birth to five baby orcas, but all died at a very young age. Orcas show signs of intense grieving. Some in the wild have been known to carry the dead carcasses of their babies on their rostrums for days, even weeks.

Observers, trainers, and animal welfare organizations decried her worsening physical and mental condition – YouTube videos show her repeatedly banging her head against the side of her tank. Her death by bacterial infection is common for captive cetaceans, as the stress and boredom in captivity likely suppresses the immune response.

The Whale Sanctuary Project, of which IMMP Director David Phillips is a member of the Board of Directors, had hoped that there could be a possibility to relocate Kiska to a new seaside sanctuary being established in Nova Scotia.

Phillips stated: “There is little doubt that Kiska could have had a far better quality of life at a seaside sanctuary. And this also goes for the approximately 50 captive belugas that are held at MarineLand.”

Had Kiska lived, she would have had a huge area to roam in the sanctuary, without having to perform tricks or be on exhibit to the public. The Whale Sanctuary Project would have provided round the clock staff and veterinary care and an enriched environment where Kiska could have spent the rest of her life.

But it was not to be. MarineLand rebuffed efforts to retire Kiska to the Whale Sanctuary Project, and she died alone.

Under Canada’s 2019 federal law Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act, also known as the “Free Willy Bill”, no Canadian facilities are allowed to hold, breed, or import whales and dolphins. Because it held cetaceans before the enactment of the new law, MarineLand is unfortunately still allowed to hold beluga whales and dolphins currently confined there. Though MarineLand re-opens to the public in May, they have very recently given official notice that the facility is to be sold. This would likely result in closure and finding homes for all marine mammals held there.

After Kiska’s death the only remaining captive orcas in North America are held at three SeaWorld parks (18 orcas) and the Miami Seaquarium (Tokitae, also known as Lolita). Plans are in the works for Toki to be relocated to a seaside sanctuary in her home waters in the Pacific Northwest.

IMMP is dedicated to ending the captivity of whales and dolphins around the world. Whales and dolphins should be left in the ocean, where they belong, with their families and their unique aquatic environment, which cannot be duplicated. There is much to be done, but it is clear that public support for holding whales and dolphins in captivity for entertainment is waning, and the days of holding orcas in concrete tanks are numbered.

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You can help orcas and other dolphins in captivity by donating to support the work of the International Marine Mammal Project of Earth Island Institute. Your contributions are key to improving the lives of countless orcas and other marine mammals. We’ve succeeded in pressuring SeaWorld to stop breeding and importing orcas. Several dolphin tanks have been closed down or will shortly close, including the Mirage Hotel dolphin pools in Las Vegas and MarineLand in Canada. But much remains to be done. We don’t want to see more orca deaths in aquariums as happened with Kiska. Please help captive orcas live a freer life. Thanks for your support!