Tilikum
Imagine being captured and taken away from your family at a young age to live in captivity. This is exactly what happened to an orca whale named Tilikum. Tilikum was born in 1981 and lived at SeaWorld of the Pacific in South Oak Bay, British Columbia. He currently is located in SeaWorld Orlando, Florida. He is the largest orca living in captivity. On February 20, 1991 horror struck Seaworld of the Pacific. Tilikum, along with two other orcas, pulled a young marine biologist under the water. She drowned within minutes and her body was recovered two hours later. Tilikum was then relocated to SeaWorld Orlando. The documentary Blackfish covers the story of Tilikum at SeaWorld and the controversy of killer whales being held in captivity. Though SeaWorld is …show more content…
Killer whales are taken from the wild at a very young age. The helpless mothers cry out to the young orca as they’re taken away, never to be seen again. The young orca is then taken away in a speedboat to perform and die in a metal tank. The deepest tank that the orcas are placed in is only forty feet deep, about the size of a bathtub to the whales.. Many orcas suffer from sunburns because in the ocean the whales can swim to deep depths to hide from the burning sun but they are unable to do so in the tank that they live in. Male orcas have a lifespan of about 60 to 70 years while female orcas can live for 90 years, but those held in captivity see an average of nine years. It is not uncommon to see orcas with collapsed dorsal fins. Most orcas held in captivity are ill and as a result their dorsal fin begins to bend. On top of the terrible living space, the trainers that work with the orcas have limited knowledge in marine biology. The trainers are performers not biologists, their job is to put on a good show not to educate the public. I strongly believe that Blackfish exposed the truth about SeaWorld that was being hidden from the public, it is a business after
Imagine being captured and taken away from your family at a young age to live in captivity. This is exactly what happened to an orca whale named Tilikum. Tilikum was born in 1981 and lived at SeaWorld of the Pacific in South Oak Bay, British Columbia. He currently is located in SeaWorld Orlando, Florida. He is the largest orca living in captivity. On February 20, 1991 horror struck Seaworld of the Pacific. Tilikum, along with two other orcas, pulled a young marine biologist under the water. She drowned within minutes and her body was recovered two hours later. Tilikum was then relocated to SeaWorld Orlando. The documentary Blackfish covers the story of Tilikum at SeaWorld and the controversy of killer whales being held in captivity. Though SeaWorld is …show more content…
Killer whales are taken from the wild at a very young age. The helpless mothers cry out to the young orca as they’re taken away, never to be seen again. The young orca is then taken away in a speedboat to perform and die in a metal tank. The deepest tank that the orcas are placed in is only forty feet deep, about the size of a bathtub to the whales.. Many orcas suffer from sunburns because in the ocean the whales can swim to deep depths to hide from the burning sun but they are unable to do so in the tank that they live in. Male orcas have a lifespan of about 60 to 70 years while female orcas can live for 90 years, but those held in captivity see an average of nine years. It is not uncommon to see orcas with collapsed dorsal fins. Most orcas held in captivity are ill and as a result their dorsal fin begins to bend. On top of the terrible living space, the trainers that work with the orcas have limited knowledge in marine biology. The trainers are performers not biologists, their job is to put on a good show not to educate the public. I strongly believe that Blackfish exposed the truth about SeaWorld that was being hidden from the public, it is a business after