Orca show at Sea World San Diego
Captive killer whales are large predatory marine mammals that were first captured live and displayed in exhibitions in the 1960s, and soon became popular attractions at public aquariums and aquatic theme parks due to their intelligence, trainability, striking appearance, playfulness in captivity, and sheer size. As of December, 2014, there are 57 orcas in captivity worldwide, 35 of which are captive-born.[1] The practice of keeping killer whales in captivity has become controversial.[2]
Main article: Killer whale
Transient orcas near Unimak Island, eastern Aleutian Islands, Alaska
The killer whale (Orcinus orca) is the largest species of the Dolphin family. It is found in all the world's oceans, from the frigid Arctic and Antarctic regions to warm, tropical seas. Killer whales are intelligent, versatile and opportunistic predators. Some populations feed mostly on fish, and other populations hunt marine mammals, including sea lions, seals, walruses and even large whales. They are considered an apex predator, having no natural predators in their environment. There are up to five distinct killer whale types, some of which may be separate races, subspecies or even species.[citation needed] Killer whales are highly social; some populations are composed of matrilineal family groups, which are the most stable of any animal species.[3] The sophisticated social behavior, hunting techniques, and vocal behavior of killer whales have been described as manifestations of culture.[4]
Although killer whales are not an endangered species, some local populations are considered threatened or endangered due to pollution by PCBs, depletion of prey species, captures for marine mammal parks, conflicts with fishing activities, acoustic pollution, shipping vessels, stress from whale-watching boats, and habitat loss.[5][6][7]
Capture and breeding
Killer whales are large, active and intelligent. Males range from 6 to 9.7 m (20 to 32 ft) and weigh over 8 tonnes (8.8 tons), while females range from 5 to 7 m (16 to 23 ft) and weigh 3 to 5 tonnes (3.3 to 5.5 tons).[8] It is extremely difficult to capture killer whales and to provide a healthy environment for the captives. Early attempts in the 1960s caused many injuries and deaths. However, with experience the teams who specialized in the business became more adept and post-capture survival rates improved. Live captures peaked in the early 1970s, but have become increasingly rare as the marine parks have learned how to maintain theme park populations through captive breeding and artificial insemination.
North Eastern Pacific captures
The dorsal fin and saddle patch of a killer whale known as Sonora or sometimes Holly (A42) of the Northern Resident Orcas
The first captured North Eastern Pacific killer whale (Wanda) was caught in November 1961 by a collecting crew from Marineland of the Pacific in Los Angeles. The 5.2 m (17 ft) orca was placed in a tank at the aquarium, where she repeatedly crashed into the walls. She died the following day.[9][10] The next killer whale captured, Moby Doll, had been harpooned and shot in 1964 and survived for three months when brought back for display to Vancouver, British Columbia.[11] The third capture for display occurred in June 1965 when William Lechkobit found a 22-foot (6.7m) male orca in his floating salmon net that had drifted close to shore near Namu, British Columbia. The killer whale was sold for $8,000 to Ted Griffin, a Seattle public aquarium owner. Named after his place of capture, Namu was the subject of a film that changed some people's attitudes toward orcas.[12]
During the 1960s and early 1970s, nearly 70 killer whales were taken from Pacific waters for exhibition. The Southern Resident community of the Northeast Pacific lost 48 of its members to captivity. By 1976, only 80 killer whales were left in the community, which remains endangered. With subsequent captures, the theme parks learned more about avoiding injury during capture and subsequent care of killer whales, and discovered that they could be trained to perform tricks, a great attraction to visitors. As commercial demand increased, growing numbers of Pacific orcas were captured, peaking in 1970.[13]
