During a routine day at SeaWorld on Feb. 24, whale trainer Dawn Brancheau was killed by Tilikum, a six-ton orca already linked to two other deaths. Orcas are a threatened species in some places , and while the park has no plans to relocate Tilikum, Dr. Naomi Rose, a senior scientist for Humane Society International , is calling for Tilikum’s release. Rose was involved in the release of Keiko , the animal star of the film Free Willy. We spoke with Rose about Keiko, Tilikum’s future, and the ethics of animal entertainment and marine-mammal captivity.
Q: What should happen to Tilikum?
A: I don’t think we could just let him roam free, because he has killed three people. I don’t think communities would be very keen on having this killer whale released into their area, so he will probably have to be in a sea pen his whole life. We’ve made this offer to SeaWorld. We actually think Tilikum can be retired the same way Keiko was, the difference being that he can probably never roam free.
But even in a bay that’s been netted off, or in a football-field-sized pen, he’d be better off than he is. One of SeaWorld’s objections is that he’d be alone, but he’s often alone now. He can communicate with other whales now, so it would be different for him to be completely alone. But why not put him in a pen with one of the younger whales? Even completely alone, though, he’d be better off because he’d have more to stimulate him. He’s completely bored; it’s stressful to be that mindlessly bored. Keiko had a lot to do in the sea pen. He was playing with the birds, he was playing with kelp.
I also don’t see how Tilikum’s trainers can be adequately protected. If you fall into the pool with Tilikum, the odds of getting out again are not good. That makes him infinitely more dangerous than any other adult male in captivity.
Q: How should policies change regarding whales in captivity?
A: I’m not suggesting that all whales be released. I’m saying stop the breeding. The claim that it is conservation is actually spurious because most institutions have no intention of releasing them into the wild. I’m suggesting that they slowly phase out the exhibits over time. The youngest whale in captivity is a calf, so we’re talking 30 years from now. That gives them time to transition and to find something else that’s lucrative.
These institutions are telling people that it is appropriate for humans to swim with killer whales. No one has ever been attacked by a whale in the wild because no one is foolish enough to swim with them in the wild. I have had trainers tell me that I just don’t know what they’re really like, but I would argue that the trainers don’t know what they’re really like. I have followed them around in a boat, and I’ve spent hundreds of hours watching in them in the wild, whereas they’ve interacted with them for thousands of hours in a box. They know more than I ever will about them in captivity, that’s true, but as far as what they’re really like in the wild, they know nothing.
Everything about the exhibits at SeaWorld is artificial. The tank, the food, the social groupings, the proximity with people. Tilikum could’ve lived 20 or 30 more years if he were a wild whale, but he will probably die soon. Most males in captivity don’t make it past 20; only three have made it to 30, which is the average life expectancy out in the wild. The whales are breeding in captivity, but I need only to point to puppy mills to show that animals will still breed under stressful conditions. How can it ever be wise to keep them in a concrete enclosure for their entire lives? It simply can’t be in their best interest.
Q: What about the Keiko project would you like the public to know?
A:
The large majority of folks who are negatively characterizing what happened to
Keiko are wrong. They weren’t there. He was never
attacked by wild whales; they pretty much ignored him. He hadn’t lost
any weight. He died of pneumonia, which is a fairly common cause of
death in captivity. Whether he would have lived longer if he would’ve
stayed in captivity is debatable. I feel like he lived longer because
he was released, but that’s just my opinion. No one knows what would’ve
happened. SeaWorld has had 22 orcas die in the last 24 years. About one
a year has been dying on them, most in their pre-teens and teens, most
of pneumonia or unknown causes. Only one of those was older than
Keiko.
--interview by Jessi Phillips
Q: What should happen to Tilikum?
A: I don’t think we could just let him roam free, because he has killed three people. I don’t think communities would be very keen on having this killer whale released into their area, so he will probably have to be in a sea pen his whole life. We’ve made this offer to SeaWorld. We actually think Tilikum can be retired the same way Keiko was, the difference being that he can probably never roam free.
But even in a bay that’s been netted off, or in a football-field-sized pen, he’d be better off than he is. One of SeaWorld’s objections is that he’d be alone, but he’s often alone now. He can communicate with other whales now, so it would be different for him to be completely alone. But why not put him in a pen with one of the younger whales? Even completely alone, though, he’d be better off because he’d have more to stimulate him. He’s completely bored; it’s stressful to be that mindlessly bored. Keiko had a lot to do in the sea pen. He was playing with the birds, he was playing with kelp.
I also don’t see how Tilikum’s trainers can be adequately protected. If you fall into the pool with Tilikum, the odds of getting out again are not good. That makes him infinitely more dangerous than any other adult male in captivity.
Q: How should policies change regarding whales in captivity?
A: I’m not suggesting that all whales be released. I’m saying stop the breeding. The claim that it is conservation is actually spurious because most institutions have no intention of releasing them into the wild. I’m suggesting that they slowly phase out the exhibits over time. The youngest whale in captivity is a calf, so we’re talking 30 years from now. That gives them time to transition and to find something else that’s lucrative.These institutions are telling people that it is appropriate for humans to swim with killer whales. No one has ever been attacked by a whale in the wild because no one is foolish enough to swim with them in the wild. I have had trainers tell me that I just don’t know what they’re really like, but I would argue that the trainers don’t know what they’re really like. I have followed them around in a boat, and I’ve spent hundreds of hours watching in them in the wild, whereas they’ve interacted with them for thousands of hours in a box. They know more than I ever will about them in captivity, that’s true, but as far as what they’re really like in the wild, they know nothing.
Everything about the exhibits at SeaWorld is artificial. The tank, the food, the social groupings, the proximity with people. Tilikum could’ve lived 20 or 30 more years if he were a wild whale, but he will probably die soon. Most males in captivity don’t make it past 20; only three have made it to 30, which is the average life expectancy out in the wild. The whales are breeding in captivity, but I need only to point to puppy mills to show that animals will still breed under stressful conditions. How can it ever be wise to keep them in a concrete enclosure for their entire lives? It simply can’t be in their best interest.
Q: What about the Keiko project would you like the public to know?
--interview by Jessi PhillipsA: The large majority of folks who are negatively characterizing what happened to Keiko are wrong. They weren’t there. He was never attacked by wild whales; they pretty much ignored him. He hadn’t lost any weight. He died of pneumonia, which is a fairly common cause of death in captivity. Whether he would have lived longer if he would’ve stayed in captivity is debatable. I feel like he lived longer because he was released, but that’s just my opinion. No one knows what would’ve happened. SeaWorld has had 22 orcas die in the last 24 years. About one a year has been dying on them, most in their pre-teens and teens, most of pneumonia or unknown causes. Only one of those was older than Keiko.