Victory: Three Dolphin Prisons Shutting Down

By Mark J. Palmer

In a whirl of action, three prominent marine parks, in Canada, the US, and France, are in the process of either shutting down entirely or at least divesting themselves of their captive dolphins and whales.

These victories against captivity are fueled by increased public concern for the welfare of dolphins and whales in small concrete tanks. Cetaceans, after all, belong in the ocean and not on land.

Several of these facilities have been targeted for years by environmental and animal welfare activists, with petitions, demonstrations, and lawsuits seeking an end to confining intelligent, social animals for profit and entertainment.

In France, a new law ending the keeping of orcas in captivity has passed, and Marineland, in the city of Antibes, must now relinquish their last three orcas: Wikie, a female, her brother Inouk, and her male child Keijo.

The debate now is about where they will go. Marineland Antibes apparently wants to send the orcas (likely for a hefty amount of money) to an aquarium in Japan or perhaps China. There, the three related orcas would be likely split up and would have to spend the rest of their lives performing tricks, which is not in keeping with the spirit of the new law.

Activists in France, backed by animal organizations worldwide, would prefer the orcas be retired to a seaside sanctuary, where they would not be forced to perform and would have a much larger, more natural area of the ocean to roam in. Veterinary care and food would be provided for the lifetime of the Antibes orcas. This proposal would be in keeping with the new French law against orca captivity.

Meanwhile, the Miami Seaquarium was recently ordered to vacate by Miami-Dade County officials over concerns about the welfare of their remaining animals after the sad death of Tokitae (also known as Lolita). Her passing occurred while efforts were in motion to establish a seaside sanctuary for Tokitae in her home waters of the Pacific Northwest. The Miami Seaquarium, which has been opposed for decades by animal activists, is resisting closure, and the ultimate outcome will not be determined for several months, if not years, while the conflict makes its way through the courts.

It is unclear where the few dolphins and other animals remaining at the Miami Seaquarium would go, but likely they would be moved to other captive facilities.

And MarineLand in Niagara Falls, Canada, long a target for animal rights activists due to poor treatment of its animals, is selling its own signs! A shutdown is imminent, at long last. While the last orca at MarineLand died last year, there are still a large number of beluga whales left stranded in tanks in the park. These animals would benefit by being moved to a seaside sanctuary.

In addition, the Moscow Aquarium last year announced they would no longer keep orcas. Two of their captive orcas died last year; they now have one remaining female and her recent calf.

These closures point to an important fact about captivity of cetaceans. While cetaceans often die an early death in captivity, some have long lives nonetheless. What happens to them when the facility they are living in – a for-profit facility – suddenly goes belly up? And of course, it is not just cetaceans that are stranded in these tanks. Also at risk are the many other wild animal species displayed in such parks. Where will they go?

Captivity of cetaceans is thankfully ending in many parts of the world. Canada, France, South Korea, and many other countries have banned cetacean captivity or are phasing it out. Fewer counties in the world are allowing the dangerous captures of wild whales and dolphins for captivity. Breeding programs, which once were considered promising by entertainment facilities, are not working out, especially for beluga whales and orcas.

The end is near, but we still have a way to go. China and Japan still have numerous captive facilities, almost one hundred facilities or more in each country. New aquariums, with performing dolphins, are also being built in wealthy Middle Eastern countries like Dubai.

But once the crowds stop coming, these facilities will eventually go bankrupt and be forced to shut down.

In dealing with the aftermath of the end of cetacean captivity, at least in North America, we will have to work even harder to find good homes, especially seaside sanctuaries, to retire the remaining captives.

***************************************

The International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute and many other groups have a long list of captive cetacean facilities that have shut down or were never built due to our persistent actions. Captivity is a failure for these animals, which do poorly when ripped from their families and transferred to sterile concrete coffins. These whales and dolphins need your help! Please donate to support IMMP’s campaigns to end cetacean captivity and advocate for seaside sanctuaries.