What Taking Orcas From the Ocean for Captivity Does to Wild Pods

Most of you have likely seen Blackfish and if you haven’t yet… watch it!

Without a doubt, Blackfish has completely altered mainstream thought on marine mammal captivity and has also led an appetite for legislative change to ban the use of orcas for entertainment purposes.

So, finally the masses are coming to the realization that this type of captivity for human entertainment and profit is completely unacceptable. But let’s come at this from another angle.

Marine ecosystems have been absolutely desecrated by human interference, to a point where scientists are now telling us that we may be sitting on the precipice of a major extinction event. With this in mind how can anyone support, never mind make profit, out of kidnapping wild ocean mammals from their habitats for the sole purpose of human entertainment?

Marine Mammal Kidnapping

High-speed boat chases, violent beatings, stress, death and kidnapping; the wild capture of whales and dolphins is brutal. Many are targeted and many are killed or injured. The saddest thing is that it is the young and healthy that are most commonly taken in these captures. These are the future generations of these already struggling species and the implications of human interference are much more far reaching than the initial kidnappings.

Apart from the brutality of it all, the removal of the fittest can have substantial negative impact on the animals left behind. In certain species of marine mammal, it is the strong that hold the whole family together. Removing these members can lead to the entire group dispersing as their natural cohesion is turned upside down, leaving them struggling to find food and becoming more vulnerable to predation.

Although orca whales can be found in virtually every major marine region across the world, there are a number of orca family pods that are currently considered endangered or threatened. The southern resident orcas are the most well-known endangered family, comprised of the J, K, and L pods. These pods can be found off the coast of British Columbia and Washington state. Interestingly, these are the same waters where early wild-orca captures began for major marine parks such as SeaWorld and Marineland Canada.

Many people do not realize that different orca pods can have not only distinct features, but specific dialects and behaviors. While these whales are generally considered monotypic (belonging to one species), there is evidence that several subspecies of orca exist, divided by pod grouping. Meaning, if one grouping is disturbed and disbands because of live-capture events this can mean the loss of an entire wild orca family which could cascade into the loss of that orca species.

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/what-taking-orca-whales-from-the-wild-for-captivity-does-to-wild-pods/?utm_source=Green+Monster+Mailing+List&utm_campaign=cfcab2b8d9-NEWSLETTER_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_bbf62ddf34-cfcab2b8d9-106919241