Orcas, often known as killer whales, are magnificent aquatic marine mammals. Orcas do not belong in captivity; they are used for unethical reasons such as human entertainment and to make money. Although killer whales have “whale” in their names, they actually are the largest breed of dolphin. Orcas are known as killer whales not because of any danger to humans, but because they feed on other big mammals (Bio expedition.) As Ethan Morris posted in his article, killer whales had never been a threat to human beings until they were held in captivity as a sign of frustration. Orcas should not be held in captivity; it is an unhealthy habitat and they are not getting the needed amount of exercise.
Orcas are often known as killer whales, which is a deceiving name because some humans believe Orcas are vicious creatures and are a threat. In fact, these large sea mammals received the name “Killer Whale” because they eat other large sea mammals. There is no record of Orcas killing humans in the wild, but many incidents have occurred while Orcas have been held in captivity. The big, famous Orca, Tilikum, which most people know as Shamoo, has killed three people since he was captured thirty years ago, just at the age of two. Tili’s owners try to push the blame on trainer error, according to Oteyza there are eyewitnesses who say that statement is, in fact, a lie, and Tili knew what he was doing. The incident may not have started as aggression, but that is how it ended (Oteyza)
Tili’s first kill happened at Sea Land Pacific in Canada where he was brought after he was captured. He was held in very harsh conditions. The only area he had to swim in was a little pool that he shared with two female Orcas; during the night hours, mainly five in the ...
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This resulted in him spending the majority of his time in isolation, something orca whales are not used to. They are known for being social, emotional creatures. They spend their whole life in their pods and form very close bonds with each other. SeaWorld’s arrangement of whales is extremely unnatural because they put random, unrelated whales in a small area together. By doing this, they add to these animals’ frustrations of being in captivity. Years passed, and Tilikum became a part of the main show at SeaWorld. One night in 1999, a man snuck into the park, assumably to see the whales up close. He was found the next morning, draped across Tilikum’s back without any clothes. Among many other injuries, his genitals were ripped off and eaten by the massive whale. SeaWorld public relations released the easy story of a mentally unstable man wanting to have a one on one experience with a killer
I am sure almost all of you have either been to or heard of SeaWorld. Today I am going to tell you about what they do to their orcas that they are trying to hide. I chose this topic after watching a documentary called “Blackfish” that goes into the behind the scenes of how SeaWorld treats its animals. I have since done further research online to prepare for this presentation. This is an important topic because you should know what kind of company you are funding and behaviors you are endorsing when you go on your vacations to this destination. Today I am going to persuade you that SeaWorld is corrupt and maltreats its animals, specifically the orcas. First, I will talk about the specific way the orcas are treated and how it affects them
Second reason why they shouldn’t be kept in a captivity. You can’t recreate on orcas natural environment. The pods sea world cannot hold 40 or more whales which are usually in a pod. If it holds 40 orcas they will make more babies and after their gonna be so much whales and the water won’t hold that much whales. Because whales are the size of bus school and is just like 40 bus
The mental and physical stress affects the whale’s bodies, which leads them to lash out in different ways. Expressed in the “Blackfish” documentary, Tilikum shows his stress in different ways, from breaking teeth to three deaths of trainers. Tilikum, in attempt to manage stress, chewed on the concrete and metal walls of his tank, shattering his teeth. Many of the Orca’s teeth end up being drilled, hollow, or fractured. Tilikum eventually turned to a different way of relieving stress. The first occurrence happened in February 21st, 1991 where Sealand trainer and marine biologist student Keltie Byrne fell into a pool with the holding of three orcas, one including Tikilium. Keltie’s autopsy read that she was drowned by being tossed among the three orcas like a playtoy (“Orca”). The second occurrence happened on July 6th, 1999, a man trespassing through the park named Daniel P. Dukes was found dead across the back of Tilikum one morning when the park was being opened. He was found with many wounds and punctures to his body, his autopsy showed he had a profound death of drowning. The last occurrence happened February 24th, 2010 when Dawn Brancheau, a SeaWorld trainer was pulled into the water by Tilikum, who had her ponytail in his mouth. The death of Dawn Brancheau concluded that she was killed by blunt force trauma and being drowned. “Tilikum (orca)”. By levels of stress being strained, different animals take out stress
Nation Geographic, Jane J. Lee. Former SeaWorld Trainer: Stop Using Killer Whales for Entertainment. 16 January 2014.
They succeed in catching Tilikum, a large male orca, along with two other females, and almost immediately, an important question is raised in the viewer’s mind: What gives humanity the right to incarcerate and separate these animals from their natural environment and their families? As the documentary progresses, Tilikum begins to exhibit frustration and aggressive behavior at the amusement park due to the fact that he is being kept in a small underwater storage container when not on display. Eventually, this treatment leads Tilikum to kill his trainer by dragging her to the bottom of the performance tank and forcing her to drown. At this point, another question is presented: Is Tilikum’s aggressive behavior a product of nature, and the nature of orcas as a species, or is it due to his coerced captivity? Over the course of the documentary, a number of killer whales are caught and brought to different aquatic parks where the viewer gets a behind-the-scenes look at what happens to these animals and their families upon imprisonment.
The issue of keeping Orcas in captivity and under the care of man has been a controversial practice ever since the first dolphins and whales were taken into aquariums for the amusement of humans. In more recent times, the documentary Blackfish (which has been recently broadcasted on popular TV stations such as CNN) that focuses on Tilikum, an orca held by SeaWorld, has brought to light the controversy over captive killer whales. Orcas are majestic, beautiful, and intelligent creatures that should not be kept in captivity for our entertainment because of the harm it causes them.
"Save The Whales - Captivity." Save The Whales - Captivity. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.
To this day there is no record of any whale doing harm to a human in the wild. Whales have extremely advanced brains even similar to humans. They can process emotions and feelings so they are very aware of what is happening to them. By nature whales are not aggressive or harmful to humans but when pushed they will react in a very dangerous way. Particulary in Tilicums case he was abused by the female whales, they would rub their teeth on him and many times there was blood. Because of this Sea World would put him by himself away from the other animals, this no doubt contributed to his behavior. There was no where for him to go, he was extremely large and where he was kept was not a conducive environment. Before Tilicum killed one of Sea Worlds trainers there was an incident where he jumped out and tried to pull a trainer, Sea World was now aware of how Tilicum acted and...
I think that killer whale shows should be banned because killer whales can protect themselves in the wild,they can lose natural abilities to hunt and feed themselves, and that killer whale shows can ruin the population of killer whales. My first reason is that, that killer whales could protect themselves in the wild because from a website called “animals.mom.me,” it said that “Orcas in the wild have an average life expectancy of 30 to 50 years-their estimated maximum lifespan is 60 to 70 years for males and 80 to over 100 years for females. The average age of death for orcas that have lived in seaworld is 13 years old.” So this shows that if you do not capture orcas (killer whales), they will have a longer life span because they can protect themselves in the wild and can survive much longer than 13 years in an aquarium.
If you have ever been to Sea World, you may have noticed the orcas’ collapsed dorsal fins. The trainers will tell you that this is normal. While it’s true that all captive adult male orcas have collapsed dorsal fins, in the wild, less than five percent of adult males have this condition. It is caused by their unnatural environment and is the sign of poor health (Rose). In the wild, orcas dive to depths of nearly 200 feet; however, their deepest tank at Sea World is only 40 feet deep. Spending so much time near the water’s surface causes the orcas to have constant sunburn (8 Reasons). Incompatibility among captive orcas leads to bullying and aggressive behavior. Aggressive orcas are known to “rake” their teeth down the side of other orcas causing open wounds. Captive females have been known to act aggressively or even reject their newborns. This behavior is not common in the wild. It may be caused by poor psychological development due to unnatural social grouping
Rose, Naomi A. “Killer Controversy: Why Orcas Should No Longer Be Kept in Captivity.” Humane Society International and The Humane Society of the United States. Sept. 2011. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.
...r humans because killer whales are one of the world's most powerful predators. Perhaps the greatest threat to the killer whales comes from the disturbance and degradation of its habitat. As a top predator, the killer whale is particularly vulnerable to the accumulation of contaminants in its tissues; for example, some populations have been found to carry high levels of chemicals such as PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), with negatively affects survival and reproduction. Large-scale oil spills can also affect the killer whales, either directly, or indirectly by reducing the abundance of its prey. Disturbance from boats and other man-made underwater noises can affect their behavior, disrupt echolocation and social calls, and reduce the ability of orcas to forage effectively. This may become a problem in areas where whale-watching is becoming popular. (Arkive).
The. Pollan, Michael. A. The Omnivore's Dilemma. N. p. : Penguin Books, 2006.
The Orca is irrefutably one of the most fascinating animals in the ocean. Killer whales, or Orca, are aquatic mammals which live in almost every ocean on Earth. Their black and white color pattern makes them one of the most easily recognized animals on Earth, and their intelligence and strength makes them apex predators. Though the killer whale sounds like an aggressive animal, Orcas are very social and are very sensible in what they kill.