Like any other zoo or sanctuary, countless marine mammal exhibitions impose the needs of the visiting public before the needs of the animals. Most of the enclosures have the purpose to keep the animals always visible, but not comfortable. Many die far short from their natural lifespan as a result of not having their needs fulfilled. In fact, a lot of beached marine mammals, especially whales and dolphins, die after rescued.
Public display facilities maintain that they enhance the lives of marine mammals in captivity by protecting them from the rigors of the natural environment. The truth is that marine mammals have evolved physically and behaviorally to survive these rigors. For example, nearly every kind of marine mammal, from sea lion to dolphin, travels large distances daily in a search for food.
In captivity, wild-caught marine mammals gradually experience the atrophy of many of their natural …show more content…
Majority of marine mammals navigate by echolocation, but in aquariums, the echo from their own sonar clicks bounce off the walls, which can drive them insane and force them into endless circles. Joyce Tischler, from the Animal Legal Defense Fund, described keeping a six-tonne orca in Sea World's tanks as akin to keeping a human in a bathtub for his entire life. David Phillips, director of the International Marine Mammal Project for the Earth Island Institute, which led the efforts to rehabilitate the orca Keiko – made famous by the movie Free Willy – said: "Orcas deserve a better fate than living in cramped