Wild orcas have never killed a person. It’s not surprising that when you take a predator out of its natural environment (and this orca was captured when it was about two years old), it will eventually lash out. For an orca to kill a person isn’t natural behavior, but it’s not surprising. Taking an animal of that size and strength, with that much intelligence, and making it live an unnatural lifestyle is wrong. Doing to to make money is even worse. The educational value is not high enough to justify it. What do you learn about true orca behavior from going to Sea World?
The only thing I wonder about is whether or not animals such as dolphins and orcas in captivity need the intellectual stimulation provided by the trainers. In the wild, they use their skill and intelligence to survive. In captivity, maybe they need something like that as well. Not that it should be put on display, or animals captured to provide that kind of display, but if they can’t survive in the wild enriching their lives might be a good thing. I thought of this when reading “Tribe of Tiger,” where the author states she would rather see big cats in the circus, where they are active and stimulated, than lounging around in a zoo with no challenge or interest in their lives. I thought it was an interesting position to take, and she backed it up very well.
I’d rather go to an aquarium or zoo that provides as natural a habitat as possible for an animal that has been bred in captivity or has been rescued and rehabilitated but is unable to survive in the wild.