Environmental campaigners have said they are taking legal action against a French marine park over the treatment of its orca whales and other animals after a number were killed during a storm. Marineland in Antibes reopened a week ago after suffering severe damage in deadly storms that struck the Côte d’Azur in southern France in […]
Tag: Orca
UK’s last resident killer whales ‘doomed to extinction’
The UK’s last pod of killer whales is doomed to extinction, with new research revealing western European waters as a global hotspot for the lingering legacy of toxic PCB pollution. The persistent chemicals, used in electrical equipment but banned in the 1980s, are still leaking into the oceans and were also found in extremely high […]
California bans captive breeding of SeaWorld killer whales
The California Coastal Commission on Thursday approved a $100 million expansion of the tanks SeaWorld uses to hold killer whales in San Diego — but it banned breeding of the captive orcas that would live in them. Animal rights activists praised the decision as a death blow to the use of killer whales at the […]
Petition: Russia, Stop Wild Orca Captures!
Since the release of the film, “Blackfish,” there has been an increased worldwide outcry over the capture of Orcas. But that hasn’t stopped Russia from taking two from the wild in the last two weeks. According to some sources, these captures, which are shrouded in secrecy, are also taking place illegally because the Russian Federal […]
POLL: Should whales and dolphins be kept in captivity for our entertainment?
A documentary examining the treatment of killer whales in captivity claims that the giant mammals that have delighted generations of children are being deeply traumatised by their conditions. The movie, which is called Blackfish and will be released in July in the UK and the United States, focuses on an animal called Tilikum who has […]
Whale carcass may be towed out to sea to save pod
Marine experts are contemplating towing the carcass of a killer whale out to sea to encourage members of its pod to move into deeper waters off Queensland’s coast. Up to eight whales remain near Fraser Island where two whales, a mother and her calf, died after becoming stranded on Wednesday morning. Rescuers fear the pod […]
Disabled Killer Whale Survives with Help from Its Pod
In one of those incredible-but-true stories that makes you want to give the oceans a giant hug, a disabled killer whale missing two of its fins and unable to hunt to feed itself is able to survive through the help of its family. The young male killer whale, or orca, has no dorsal fin or […]
Grins and Fins: Meet the Sociable False Killer Whale
American photographer Doug Perrine, 60, captured this priceless image of a false killer whale mid-grin off the coast of Kona, Hawaii. Less commonly known than the killer whale (or orca), the false killer whale is the third largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. Growing to 1,500 pounds and up to 20 feet long, the […]