Persuasive Essay on Orcas in Captivity

As of August 2021, there are 19 killer whales being held captive in the three SeaWorld parks in the United States (“Fate of Orcas in Captivity”). Killer whales are highly intelligent. They exhibit intelligence through their language, hunting abilities, and family structure (Visser, 2015). Keeping them in captivity limits their ability to fully live. While in captivity killer whales are limited by how far they can swim, the other whales they can interact with, and their dependency on humans is increased (“Fate of Orcas in Captivity”). This close quarter atmosphere creates a psychosis for the whales, especially towards humans (Cowperthwaite, 2013). As a result the captive whales will show aggression and cause harm. Seaworld should release all their killer whales back into their natural habitat. 

Killer whales show signs of intelligence through language (Visser, 2015). They travel in groups known as pods and researchers have discovered that the dialects used between the different pods are unique (Visser, 2015). This indicates that there is a familial component to their species. When SeaWorld’s whales were being rounded up for capture, they used a clever tactic to evade being caught by separating and going in different directions. The males went one direction while surfacing to make their presence known, while the females and their calves tried to stay submerged going the other direction (Cowperthwaite, 2013), This shows there was a strategy involved to escape their captors. When killer whales hunt, they show tactics of extreme intelligence. For instance, they will hunt seals in teams by swimming under an iceberg creating a wave which pushes the seal into the water (”Orcas hunting seal“). Another example of their intelligence is they turn sharks and stingrays upside down. This puts their prey in a state called tonic immobility where they fall asleep allowing the orcas to eat them without struggle (Visser, 2015). Lastly, orcas have been known to help people in various scenarios. They will defend or help humans while they are in distress in the water (PBS, 2016).  This level of altruism can only be shown by mammals with high intelligence. 

The average orca has the ability to swim hundreds of miles in a single day. The vastness of the oceans cannot compare to the size of the pools in which they are kept (Cowperthwaite, 2013). While in the small pools it has been observed that the dorsal fins fold over in what is known as “dorsal fin collapse” (Cowperthwaite, 2013). This only happens in captivity and has never been seen in the wild (Cowperthwaite, 2013). The life expectancy of a wild orca is approximately 50 years compared to an orca in captivity which is 14 years (“SeaWorld of Hurt”). Clearly confinement is not conducive to the orcas living to their lifespan potential. When an orcas calf is born in captivity it is separated from its mother after only a short period of time together. After the separation the mother orcas have been shown to lay motionless for hours in a seemingly depressive state (Cowperthwaite, 2013). The mother also uses seldom heard long range calls to try and connect with their calf (Cowperthwaite, 2013). This heartbreaking display is cruel and confusing to the mother thinking her calf is lost. Captivity creates unnecessary life stressors for orcas.

When killer whales are raised in captivity they suffer, being forced into an unnatural habitat that puts their lives and the lives of their trainers at risk. There have been many instances in all seaworld parks demonstrating frustrations by the captive orcas. One frustration is not being able to choose their pod companions. This makes them aggressive toward one another and results in the whales hurting and bullying each other (Cowperthwaite, 2013). In contrast when orcas are in the wild they have the entire ocean to escape aggressors. In addition to whales hurting other whales, there have also been several incidents resulting in near death and dying experiences. An example is a whale named Tilikum who spent 33 years in seaworld and killed three people including Dawn Brancheau, one of seaworld's most experienced trainers (Cowperthwaite, 2013). The resulting hostility of orcas in captivity is far different than what is seen in the wild. 

Keeping orcas in captivity for human amusement is cruel and inhumane for these highly intelligent mammals. Confinement creates conditions in which the orcas begin to exhibit hostility. The behaviors observed in captivity are very different from those observed in the wild. The benefit of trying to educate and entertain people does not outweigh the needless suffering of killer whales.