0rca wrote:SeaWorld cares. There's so much that they do for animals all around the world, including their new program, in which they are donating millions of dollars for wild orca research. The new program will also help the Southern Residents, one of the most endangered orca populations. They also have reduced millions of sea animals, and successfully returned them to the ocean. Now, I'm not saying they're perfect, because everyone and everything has its flaws. However, SeaWorld is one of the most highly respected and experienced marine facilities in the world. And they're only improving. Example : The Blue World Project. I was actually at the park the day they announced they were expanding the tanks, and the design looks amazing. It is rumored to have live plants, and actual ocean currents. There's absolutely no doubt that SeaWorld is one of the best places for these animals, since we obviously can't release them. Even the animals born in the wild should not be released, because there are still many possible risks. I consider myself a selective - cap, since I understand and agree with both sides of the argument. I know a lot more about these animals then most people, so please don't tell me I'm wrong; I know what I'm talking about.
The issue isn't Seaworld. The issue is that Orcas, and ceteceans in general, cannot live happily and healthily in captivity. "The Blue World Project"'s release date continues to be pushed back. Marine Mammal experts have agreed it'll improve conditions, but will in no way replace the hundreds of miles they would swim each day in the ocean. Please read
this article by Naomi Rose, a marine mammal scientist who works for the government and has been studying wild and captive orcas since she was a graduate student.
No one who is educated on this argument thinks orcas should be released. They need to be retired to large, ocean sea pens, where they can live out their lives without being forced to do tricks.
Orcas are too smart to do mindless tricks and live in concrete tanks. They are too social to be shoved with strangers who speak completely different languages. They are too big to ever be kept in a large enough tank, or even sea pen. They are too emotionally and physically complex to EVER be kept happily in captivity. This is a fact. The only debate now should be what to do with the whales currently in captivity.
0rca wrote:The only reason an orca would swim 100 miles a day is if they were staving and could not find food. If they don't need to swim that much, they won't. Humans are one of the only species who seek satisfaction beyond survival. It's the same thing that contributes to dorsal collapse. At SeaWorld, the animals do not need to hunt, so they don't need to swim as much as their counterparts in the wild. Therefore, that gives them more time to rest, or spend their time however they wish. And if the whale wishes to log at the surface, gravity will eventually take its toll.
Okay, let's see a different side of the argument about the tanks being too small. Orcas need space to form social bonds. They need to be able to get away from each other when disputes get heated, or when the simply want to be alone. They don't have the space to do this. They become aggressive because they literally cannot get away from other whales. There isn't enough room. They attack each other, raking, charging, biting...
examples,
"Kandu V, a female orca at Sea World of California (SWC), bled to death after 11.9 years (4332 days) in captivity when an artery was severed at the upper jaw (See Appendix A). The wound was self-inflicted as she collided with another whale in a display of dominance. Over the next 45 minutes, and in view of the public, she slowly bled out, spouting blood from her blowhole until she died." (
source)
