The Effects Of Captive Orcas On The Whales

Captivity not only damages the physical and mental health of these animals but it also puts trainers in danger yet places such as Sea World still choose to profit off of them. In the wild female orcas can live up to 100 years old and males can live

Have you ever gone and seen orcas( killer whales) at a park like sea world. Do you really know how they feel. Sure you might be happy, but are they? At sea world they have not been taken orcas from wild, but instead they have been over breeding the ones they have already have. That is a lot of over breeding and in which can hurt the orcas. Orcas should not be kept in captivity because they have shorter life spans, it gives them health problems, and when forced to live in captivity they become killing machines.

The orca or “killer whale” is a highly intelligent and self aware creature. In the wild, they are regarded as gentle and friendly, only in captivity do they live up to their nickname “killer whale”. No reported deaths have been documented in the wild, but 4 deaths have occurred while in captivity. Tilikum the orca is arguably the most infamous of captive orcas. He was captured in 1983 when he was 2 years old. Because of the stress of being deprived of everything natural and important to him, Tilikum has been involved in 3 deaths during his time in captivity. Conditions for orcas in captivity such as, small tanks, horrible health conditions and inadequate social interaction, breeds aggression. Seaworld likes to make believe they care about their orcas when, in reality, they view these intelligent creatures as nothing more than underwater cash cows. Orcas do not belong in captivity, they are going to continue to be a danger to both themselves and humans as long as they are being held prisoner.

One major reason why orcas should not be held in captivity is because orcas are a family oriented type species. Orcas are extremely social animals. Orcas are very close to their family. For example, when SeaWorld orca catchers came to capture orcas in the year 1977, John Crowe, one of the orca catcher’s, said, “When we took the baby orcas and left the adults, the adults huddled in a circle and made noises to the baby orcas that were being taken away.” He also stated, “We dropped the net to let the other adult orcas go, but they stayed and huddled around the boat.” When killer whales are in captivity, they are not with their family. They are involuntary forced to live with other orcas from a different family and are

Orcas are forced to live in tight quarters together; they have nowhere to escape conflict. This results in anxiety and tension leading to fights between orcas and their trainers. For example, in February 2010, Dawn Brancheau was pulled underwater and killed by a killer whale named Tilikum. “The 40-year-old trainer was at ease with the killer whale and had just petted him on the nose” (ABC News 2010). Orcas have social rules that prohibit violence against one another, if a fight were to occur, they can find the space to flee. Unfortunately for Dawn, Tilikum didn’t have the space he needed and lashed out. Also, injuries caused by their “family” only occur in captivity; fights rarely occur in their natural environment. Although orcas naturally eat seals, penguins, and squids, these animals only become “killer” whales in captivity. Can you blame these amazingly intelligent and emotional creatures for being frustrated with their confinement?

Orca whales have been in difficult circumstances ever since the first orca was captured in 1961. The first orca captured lived two days in captivity then died and the reported cause of dead was pneumonia. Many things come to mind when people think an orca is in captivity. Many people tend to believe they are being treated, they will enjoy life more, and they will live longer due to the fact they are receiving food and care. These statements are told to spectators at seaworld, marineland and many other water parks around the globe. The facts disagree with these statements. Orca are very friendly animals, there have been no recorded attacks of orcas hurting any human being in the wild. Most of them will come up to fishers boats and be

The conditions that the captured killer whales are forced to live in are not acceptable replacements for the wildlife habitats that they have been ripped from. All the enclosures that the orcas are kept in do not provide an adequate amount of space that the animal requires. The size of an orca in relation to the size of the tanks they are forced to live in is comparable to the

“All whales in captivity have a bad life. They’re all emotionally destroyed. They’re all psychologically traumatized. So they’re ticking time bombs.” This is a statement by Lori Marino from the documentary, Blackfish. Many statements like this one are common and believed to be true due to the proof that the documentary provides. There are many incidents that prove Orcas, also known as Killer Whales, are harmed in captivity and that their trainers are often harmed because of this, too. Orcas should not be kept in captivity since it is harmful to both Orcas and humans.

People say that keeping orca’s in captivities is not a problem, yet they do not realize that, orcas are also human beings. There are several reasons, why keeping these thirty-feet long creatures, in captivities is a problem. One of them, which are the tank, which is too small, compared to ocean where they can swim freely. One the other side, in captivities, the space is limited. Comparatively, to how they swim out in the wild “orcas can swim up to 100 miles per day- a phenomenal amount, in comparison to the exercise they receive in captivity”(Cronin). While being in captivity, orca has to keep swimming in circles or floats. Out “In the wild, killer whales typically travel in pods of between five and 30”(Melissa). In captivities there are only few whales, so it makes them more aggressive toward one another. This sometimes can be lead to danger by killing each other for fighting to gain power of the tank.

“In the wild, despite centuries of sharing the ocean, there has been only a single reliable report of an orca harming a human being.” ("8 Reasons Orcas Don't Belong at SeaWorld"). Due to stress, aggression and other causes, captive whales have killed 3 humans just since 1990s. Captive whales have injured numerous of other humans within that time as well. This proves that keeping whales in their natural habitat is best for humans. Also, most whales are not compatible to be living in small quarters with many other whales, results can be harmful. Sea world of Hurt says; “The resulting anxiety and tension cause fights between orcas.” ("8 Reasons Orcas Don't Belong at SeaWorld"). In the wild orca whales have strong social bonds that rarely ever lead to violent fights. However if fights do occur, whales have enough room to get away, captivity leads to several injuries because there is no place for the whales to go. To minimize the amount of violent activity between whales, it best to leave them in their natural environment. Finally, whales are social animals that live in groups differing from two to 15 individuals, everything changes in captivity, for example, “In some populations, children stay with their mothers for life.” ("8 Reasons Orcas Don't Belong at SeaWorld"). When orcas are split up with their families, they are put in small tanks with random whales from other family units. They are forced to interact and live with one another even though they may speak different languages. Imagine being taken from your home and out into a random house somewhere around the world. How would you feel? This is what is happening to whales around the world, it should be

Some people argue that keeping orcas in captivity is not a problem, yet they do not realize some of the limitations and dangers orcas suffer when kept in captivity. One reason is that these unpredictable, thirty-foot long creatures are usually kept in a tank that is too small for them, compared to the ocean where they can swim freely. In captivity, space is limited. According to one expert, “orcas can swim up to 100 miles per day- a phenomenal amount, in comparison to the exercise they receive in captivity” (Cronin). While in captivity, an orca has to keep swimming in circles or float, unable to exercise adequately in a confined space. The small tanks also prevent orcas from living in their natural group sizes, or pods. “In the wild, killer whales typically travel in pods of between five and 30” (Melissa). In captivity, fewer than five whales are kept together, an imbalance that makes the whales more aggressive towards one another. This can lead to dangerous, territorial situations in which captive

It’s a average, nice summer day and you and your family decide to see killer whales at SeaWorld. Once you arrive to the place and see the large animals in the tank you’re fascinated by their large size. Killer whales, or orca whales, are large marine mammals that can be found in every ocean around the world. They can swim for hundred of miles and “routinely dive up to 300 ft” (“Should Orca Whales Be Kept in Captivity”). They also live in large family groups known as pods that they will rarely ever leave. Seeing these large animals in the tanks that they make seem small due to their large size and with other whales along with marks, mainly bite marks and flopped over dorsal fin for the males, make it questionable if they even should be here and if these other whales are family in the seemingly makeshift pod. Orcas should not be in captivity because of health problems, lack of space in the tanks, and most of them are taken from their homes in the wild where their true family is.

“If you love something, set it free.” This is a quote that has circulated for years, and nowhere else is it more applicable than in SeaWorld’s parks. Trainers and corporate alike claim a deep love for the animals they keep captive, but in recent years, the topic of holding orca whales in captivity has become more controversial than ever before. The CNN documentary “Blackfish” brought the conditions Seaworld provides for its orcas to the public eye in a way that had not been done before, which led to much public outrage. The containment of orca whales for educational and entertainment purposes has, in almost every way, been brought into question. Ranging from the physical and psychological damages they experience, the issues in their family structures, and the dangers that their human trainers experience, orca whales are not fit to be kept in captivity.

Aggression towards the whale’s trainers is frequently seen with whales held in captivity and can make it very dangerous for trainers to work with them.

However it is critical to understand that when they are conserved in captivity, we prevent them from getting their main biological needs from the ocean as a natural habitat. With their wide food spectrums, orcas hunt for turtles, sea lions, crabs, seals and many other food varieties depending on their ecotypes. This makes them travel over large regions in the ocean in search of the same. Just as human beings are top of the food chain with regards terrestrial animals, so are orcas in the oceans. It is therefore important to raise our voices against this practice to avoid the risk of classifying them as endangered species. Even though the whales “gave me so much in my life and my career” (BioExpedition 1), he grew to believe that the whales’ physical and emotional well-being was incompatible with captivity. Confined to unnatural social groups for the convenience of their owners, bored and restless, forced to perform tricks for food that trainers withheld as punishment, they occasionally slipped, he writes, “into the dark side” (Adler 2).