What should we do with captive orcas?
26-02-2010 By Francis, GoalLover, UK
The attack by a captive orca on its trainer at a SeaWorld facility in Orlando, Florida has reignited debates about our treatment of these so-called ‘killer whales‘.
While attacks by captive orcas are rare, with only around 24 reported cases, attacks by orcas in the wild are even rarer. Only a small number of cases have been recorded, and never has a person been injured in an attack.
The rarity of attacks in the wild means that it is difficult for scientists to pinpoint a reason why they would attack humans. When an attack occurs in captivity, it only underlines how little we still know about the animals.
“The tragic events are a reminder that orcas are wild, strong and often unpredictable animals,” says Danny Groves, of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS).
The WDCS has repeatedly called for captive whales to be returned, not least because captivity appears to drastically reduce their life expectancy.
An argument often cited for keeping animals in captivity is that it provides a valuable opportunity to observe their behaviour. In the case of orcas though, the vast majority of useful scientific study has been made in the wild, where their complex social interactions can be observed in large groups that they form, known as ‘pods’.
Though some observations have been made into the acoustic behaviour of the whales, few insights have been made from studying captive whales. “The science doesn’t justify the captivity. One thing I would hope is that this unfortunate incident might lead to a considered discussion on phasing out these marine parks.”
Although for many people the idea of returning captive orcas to the wild seems an obvious and ethical decision. The film ‘Free Willy’ brought the issue to public attention, and while the fictionalised account of events had a happy ending, the real story involving the star of the film is a much sadder tale.
Keiko, who played ‘Willy’ in the film, was the subject of a huge campaign following the release of the film. A study published by US and Danish scientists last year in the journal Marine Mammal Science documents the attempt to release Keiko back into the wild.
In the wild, Keiko rarely interacted with wild orcas, and never integrated into a wild pod. He also struggled to learn how to hunt, making shallower and less frequent dives than wild whales. Eventually, and despite the best efforts of his trainers, he could not break his need for human contact, and kept following or returning to the trainers’ boat.
Keiko eventually died, still semi-captive in 2003.
The report wrote how this failure demonstrates the dilemma when considering the welfare of captive orcas: “The release of Keiko demonstrated that release of long-term captive animals is especially challenging and while we as humans might find it appealing to free a long-term captive animal, the survival and well being of the animal may be severely impacted in doing so.”
(Bron: http://www.goallover.org/)
(Bron foto: GoalLover)
No comments:
Post a Comment