Dedicating $50 million over next five years for marine animal rescue organization
ABOVE VIDEO:On Thursday SeaWorld announced that this will be their last generation of orcas in their care. (WOFL Fox 35 Video)
ORLANDO, FLORIDA – SeaWorld announced on Thursday that Orca breeding will end effective immediately. Below is a release by SeaWorld:
Times have changed, and we are changing with them. The killer whales currently in our care will be the last generation of killer whales at SeaWorld. The company will end all orca breeding as of today.
We always put the health and well-being of the whales first. We have the leading veterinary and scientific experts in the country to advise us on how to do this in a way that puts the health and well-being of the whales first.
We love our whales and so do many of our visitors and this is about doing the best thing for our whales, our guests, our employees and SeaWorld.
Joel Manby
“SeaWorld has introduced more than 400 million guests to orcas, and we are proud of our part in contributing to the human understanding of these animals,” said Joel Manby, President and Chief Executive Officer of SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc.
“We’ve helped make orcas among the most beloved marine mammals on the planet. As society’s understanding of orcas continues to change, SeaWorld is changing with it. By making this the last generation of orcas in our care and reimagining how guests will experience these beautiful animals, we are fulfilling our mission of providing visitors to our parks with experiences that matter.”
SeaWorld has not collected an orca from the wild in almost 40 years, and the vast majority of our orcas were born under human care. These orcas have never lived in the wild and could not survive in oceans that include environmental concerns such as pollution and other man-made threats.
The current population of orcas at Seaworld – including one orca, Takara, that became pregnant last year – will live out their lives at the company’s park habitats, where they will continue to receive the highest-quality care based on the latest advances in marine veterinary medicine, science and zoological best practices.
Guests will be able to observe these orcas through the new educational encounters and in viewing areas within the existing habitats.
The work we do at SeaWorld is critical for the protection of animals in the wild, especially marine mammals. The work done by zoological facilities like SeaWorld is critical for the protection of animals in the wild, especially marine mammals.
To that end, SeaWorld has committed $50 million over the next five years to be the world’s leading marine animal rescue organization, to advocate for an end to the commercial killing of whales and seals and an end to shark finning.”
