The four orcas Inouk, Keijo, Moana and Wikie and dolphins at the dolphinarium Marineland in France are kept in concrete tanks covered with algae, footage released by animal welfare organization One Voice shows.
One of the orcas, Inouk, looks depressed while facing a wall in the pictures. The orcas will not be used in shows anymore, but they also haven’t been sent to a marine sanctuary.
These “four orcas must not be sent to China or die in these tanks”, One Voice said in an online statement. A few months ago, they found out that there was a plan to send the orcas to a park in China, but One Voice was able to prevent that from happening.
They are now looking for solutions that will allow the “four French orcas to benefit from a different life as soon as possible”.
“There are of course concerns that dead fish and animal excrement can accumulate at the bottom of the tank(s) and not be extracted, creating a reservoir for diseases,” biologist Ingrid Visser said about the pictures. The algae, visible all over the bottom of the tanks, shows that the water has a bad pH balance, she said.
“The fact that the fin is completely collapsed clearly shows that Inouk doesn’t swim enough,” Pierre Gallego, a marine wildlife veterinary specialist, said.
“In the wild, no one day will resemble another. The change, variety, and wide range of stimulation and even challenges, constitute a normal existence for a dolphin or an orca in their wild state, whilst in captivity, every day is identical,” said Naomi Rose, a marine mammal scientific specialist.
Rose mentioned that marine sanctuaries are the solution for these orcas, but if they’re not immediately available, the situation at their current location has to improve.
Keeping them in a dirty tank with no entertainment is not a solution: “This boredom is harmful and can result in depression, which itself can lead to health problems.”
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