release of the documentary Blackfish, failed pregnancies and premature births/deaths, the captive orcas around the world, for example, wild caught Kiska in Canada; Morgan in Loro Parque, Spain; Kshamenk in Mundo Marino, Argentina; Lolita at Miami Seaquarium (deemed most eligible for release to a more natural environment by experts) – and most regrettable, the imminent death of beloved and infamous Tilikum, who, at the time of this writing, languishes in a med pool in SeaWorld Orlando, unresponsive to treatment for a bacterial lung infection. Little has been reported about SeaWorld’s expansion into the Asian and Middle East markets, but the probability is troubling.
Nevertheless, partnerships, collaborations and progress in captive animal care are to be applauded. Globally, groups and individuals have been working tirelessly in anticipation of the retirement of eligible orcas to a sanctuary or sea pen facility. Millions continue to call for the end of orca captivity, full stop. SeaWorld’s announcement is certainly a positive step forward, but it would be wise to also use this momentum to move toward education about and activism for protection of our planet’s dwindling natural resources, as Manby claims will be done: “…we are partnering with the Humane Society of the United States, the nation’s largest and most effective animal protection and advocacy organization. Together, we will work against commercial whaling and seal hunts, shark finning and ocean pollution.”
The scope of work in animal protection and environmental advocacy is massive. Again, Manby joins environmentalists and advocates by acknowledging the need for education, energy and difficult decisions “… to halt and reverse the exploitation of wild places and the extinction of wild species.”
Is protection for wild orcas and other marine mammals alone unattainable? According to an article published online January, 2016, PCB pollution continues to impact populations of orcas and other dolphins in European waters, cetacean populations in the Northeast Atlantic and the Mediterranean are declining faster than they can recover. The meta-analysis of European data collected from 1990-2012 showed that several cetacean species have very high mean blubber polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations which are likely the cause of population declines and suppression of population recovery. Even though the US Congress banned PCB production in 1979 and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants banned it in 2001, because of PCBs’ environmental toxicity and classification as a persistent organic pollutant, and “despite regulations and mitigation measures to reduce PCB pollution, their biomagnification in marine food webs continues to cause severe impacts among cetacean top predators in European seas.” The study found three out of four species: striped dolphins (SDs), bottlenose dolphins (BNDs) and orcas, or killer whales (KWs) – had mean PCB levels that markedly exceeded all known marine mammal PCB toxicity thresholds.
PCBs are not the only poison in the ocean. Roger Payne, founder and president of Ocean Alliance, presented to the International Whaling Commission annual meeting in 2010, reporting results of studies of cells from sperm whales indicate pollution is reaching the farthest corners of the oceans. Sperm whales like CONNY – the magnificent, one-of-a-kind life-size model built in 1976 by the Connecticut Cetacean Society (now Cetacean Society International) on the grounds of The Children’s Museum — are at risk worldwide. Listed as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List, populations of these deep-diving toothed whales are scant and require further analyses. In addition, efforts to assess the conservation status of sperm whales and the impact of whaling, including social disruption, on current populations are compromised due to the lack of a good model of sperm whale population structure Global population is estimated to be in the 100,000s, significantly less than pre-whaling numbers which may 