Oldest Dolphin/Whale pools/tanks

sealion

sealion

Well-Known Member
Other than Miami Seaquarium, which has the oldest and smallest killer whale pool in the Americas still to be in use (and possibly the world? can anyone confirm?), are there any other marine parks/zoos that are still using their original/old pools?
E.g the big round overground ones they used to have at marine life oceanarium/marine studios/marineland of the pacific/sea arama? (or any other type) (i think seaarama's big one was an aquarium rather than a dolphin/whale pool.)

Miami Seaquarium: (Lolita's tank)
http://3547.voxcdn.com/photos/0/60/54597_l.jpg

Marine Studios:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~miporthu/Boldt/Boldt_FL_StAugustine_Marineland.jpg

Marineland of the Pacific:
The History of Defunct Marine Mammal Parks - Marineland (Pacific) Ca,

Thanks
 
Oh my...Lolita's tank is so small! :( The most recent aquarium I've visited is Marineland in Canada (2 summers ago), and although the tanks are small they've thankfully shifted some animals around (i.e., the old "Orca Tank" is now being used for bottlenose dolphins). The old "dolphin tank" that is indoors is smaller than the Marineland Pacific tank and used to house upwards of 2-3 bottlenose dolphins (unfortunately I haven't been able to find a picture of it- although I found a slightly more interesting picture of a mixed-species exhibit with Orcas and Bottlenose dolphins)

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgu...nada+Dolphin&ndsp=20&hl=en&sa=N&start=20&um=1

The newer "Arctic Cove" tanks are bigger, but they overcrowd the animals so much I'm not sure if its much of an improvement or not...
 
The orginal 1965 opened ddolhinpool at Duisburg Zoo is still in use, but it is conencted with the new, much bigger dolphinarium, which was opend in 1995. If the females have offspring, they keep them with the calv seperated for the first weeks in the old pool, which isn't viewable to the visitors any longer. The former beluga and jacobita pool is closed since the last beluga and jacobita left the zoo and went to San Diego Seaworld. I don't know what they are plan to do with it.

Nuremberg Zoo is stil lusing the 1971 opened dolphinarium, but they have a second dolphinbuilding behind the scenes, which isn't connected with the old one. At the time, they are building a huge outdoor pool at the old dolphinarium.
 
Leptonyx said:
Oh my...Lolita's tank is so small! :( The most recent aquarium I've visited is Marineland in Canada (2 summers ago), and although the tanks are small they've thankfully shifted some animals around (i.e., the old "Orca Tank" is now being used for bottlenose dolphins). The old "dolphin tank" that is indoors is smaller than the Marineland Pacific tank and used to house upwards of 2-3 bottlenose dolphins (unfortunately I haven't been able to find a picture of it- although I found a slightly more interesting picture of a mixed-species exhibit with Orcas and Bottlenose dolphins)

Google Image Result for http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3550/3789519005_ffcf3a47ac.jpg

The newer "Arctic Cove" tanks are bigger, but they overcrowd the animals so much I'm not sure if its much of an improvement or not...
Click to expand...

Is this the old orca pool you are talking about?
http://images.travelpod.com/users/majestee/1.1151340300.marineland.jpg

I haven't been able to find a good photo of the whole of the arctic cove pool -the beluga one, (is there more than one?) but they seem to have quite a few belugas in there. Do you know whether they still use the indoor dolphin pool for anything?
 
Zebraduiker said:
The orginal 1965 opened ddolhinpool at Duisburg Zoo is still in use, but it is conencted with the new, much bigger dolphinarium, which was opend in 1995. If the females have offspring, they keep them with the calv seperated for the first weeks in the old pool, which isn't viewable to the visitors any longer. The former beluga and jacobita pool is closed since the last beluga and jacobita left the zoo and went to San Diego Seaworld. I don't know what they are plan to do with it.

Nuremberg Zoo is stil lusing the 1971 opened dolphinarium, but they have a second dolphinbuilding behind the scenes, which isn't connected with the old one. At the time, they are building a huge outdoor pool at the old dolphinarium.
Click to expand...

Is this the new pool? Dolphin tank on Flickr - Photo Sharing! Where does the old pool connect? I can't seem to find any photos of the old part.

How do they get the dolphins between the two pools? Sounds inconvenient. Are they replacing the old pool (1971) with the new one that they're building?
I'm guessing this is the old one: [ame="http://www.flickr.com/photos/catsfraupau/2769555421/"]50 im Delphinarium on Flickr - Photo Sharing![/ame]

According to various sites, Lolitas tank is the second smallest orca tank in the world. I can't think of anywhere that has a smaller one!!
Miami Seaquarium lolita Tank (some facts on her tank)

The dolphin pool at Herseypark which is no longer in use (I think) was absolutely tiny! [ame="http://www.flickr.com/photos/peachy92/2211777907/"]Dolphins on Flickr - Photo Sharing![/ame]
 
@sealion. Yes, the picture you posted is the new Duisburg dolphinarium. The connection between the new and the old pool is a canal, it starts close to the little pool on the right side of the picture. Let me see, I think, I have a picture of it.

To Nuremberg :

They connect the upcoming Dolphin Lagoon with the inside pool, they will not replace the inside pool. I don't know, if they will keep the dolphins in summer night and day outside, or if they will put in the dolphins for saftey reasons.

I was in Miami in summer and was close to visit the Seaquarium, but it is unbelivable expensive, 40 Dollars just to see a single orca in an outdated pool, some fishes, alligators and manatees ? No, so I decided to visit Jungle Island, not much better, but cheaper....
 
The Barcelona Zoo dolphinarium was opened between 1964 and 1965 (I don't know the exact date) and was rebuilt with the "current look" at 1969. According to a newspaper article the Duisburg Dolphinarium was build using maps of the Barcelona ones, so I suppose that the Barcelona dolphinarium was build before 1965.
The Barcelona dolphinarium (the outdoor one) is based on Miami Searama and Maryneland California dolphinariums.
 
Harderwijk still has it's original pool I think but it is part of an extension of the indoor dolphin complex. Most parks either extended or rebuilt.

Marineland in Florida I think also has some of the original pool but once again incorporated into a new facility.

In Italy Rimini's Dolphinarium still exists and that was built in the 1960s.

Marineland is much as it was in Mallorca when it was owned by Pleasurama but is now owned by the Aspro group who have a number of aquaria including Deep Sea World and Blue Planet.
 
John Dineley said:
Harderwijk still has it's original pool I think but it is part of an extension of the indoor dolphin complex. Most parks either extended or rebuilt.

Marineland in Florida I think also has some of the original pool but once again incorporated into a new facility.

In Italy Rimini's Dolphinarium still exists and that was built in the 1960s.

Marineland is much as it was in Mallorca when it was owned by Pleasurama but is now owned by the Aspro group who have a number of aquaria including Deep Sea World and Blue Planet.
Click to expand...

Are they having a refurb at rinimi at the moment? (until easter 2010). It looks as if they have quite a few pools/tanks but this one looks quite old: http://www.visitcattolica.com/images/immagini_portale/immaginiDelfinarioRimini_Delfinario_4.jpg

what about marineland in majorca? Is this the pool?
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/7613379.jpg

And if Lolita isn't in the smallest whale tank in the world, who is???
 
you only have the option of editing posts for (I think it is) 48 hours
 
Lolita's tank in MSQ is the smallest.

The 2000 built Orca tank in Marineland Antibes is the largest overall. Loro Parque tried to claim it as being the biggest when it's about 1 metre deeper than MLF and nowhere near as wide or open.
MLF: Marineland Antibes, France
LP: Loro Parque

Kamagowa Sea World (Not related to the Sea Worlds of America) is the smallest facility for numerous Orca's. Right now they have 7 orca's in this:
Kamogawa SeaWorld

Nagoya Aquarium in Japan is the largest facility for single Orca's in captivity.
Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium

MLF's old Orca tank was the current Dolphin tank (2/3 of the Dolphin tank). The Old dolphin pool was the existing Cali. Sea Lion pool and the Sea Lions pool... were no more than half a tennis court with some water.

If you think Lolita's tank was small, the original Shamu's tank was absoloutely tiny. The rest of the "Lone Orca's" are Kshamenk of Mundo Marina, Argentina, Shouka of Six Flags, Vallejo and Nami of Port Nagoya. Kshamenk's pool can fit 2 of MSQ's, Shouka's show pool is about the same size of SWC's Shamu Close Up. Nami's is massive! Marineland Canada's tanks are about as deep as the SWF show pool however they have the one and a small extra pool.

MLC use the indoor pool (once dubbed 'the Warehouse') for the Dolphins in the winter. When conditions get tough apparently the Dolphins move from the Waldorf Theatre to the indoor pools and are returned in the spring. The Warehouse was famously used to hold newly caught/unwanted animals like Junior an Orca with a tragic story. Keiko was also kept there for a couple weeks.


Don't let me start on the UK's dolphinaria tanks... x_x
 
Ah thanks for the info, I was always a bit confused by the fact that Kamogawa's tank holds 7 orcas!
Are there any photos around of the original Shamu tank?

I was also having a look into how many of the circular, mostly over ground, traditional dolphin tanks were still in use.
Of this design-
Google Image Result for http://www.freewebs.com/defunctmarinemammalparks/G-Gulfport-MarineLife%5B1%5D.jpg
http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgu...jPCw&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:0

From what I can see it is only Miami Seaquarium and the Gulfarium that still use this type of tank.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top