Global Captive Orca Population

I wonder if Inouk would still be alive if the transfers went through. Not to say the proposed transfer doesn’t have its issues (possible separation of the the Marineland whales, small amount of space at Japanese facilities) but I’ve read claims of poor water quality and management regarding the killer whale complex at Marineland. Inouk was already facing issues since before the original transfer date though so perhaps it would’ve just made things worse due to stress.
 
BlobfishBoy said:
I wonder if Inouk would still be alive if the transfers went through. Not to say the proposed transfer doesn’t have its issues (possible separation of the the Marineland whales, small amount of space at Japanese facilities) but I’ve read claims of poor water quality and management regarding the killer whale complex at Marineland. Inouk was already facing issues since before the original transfer date though so perhaps it would’ve just made things worse due to stress.
Click to expand...

I've seen multiple places say he was suffering from an infection related to his teeth, given the state of them it wouldn't surprise me, but I've also heard that he had not been right health wise since Moana died. Marineland do seem to regularly have issues with water quality though so that could have been a factor. It's also possible that bringing in the crane and lowering the water levels back in January could have been a contributing factor although I'm not sure if/how often this was done in the past.
 
Sadly there is no good chance for those orcas. Marineland have poor water quality and probably that´s making them fall sick more easily (Inouk´s teeth were in terrible condition and a perfect place for any infection). But the transfer to Japan, letting apart the miserable pools there, would be a very lnog journey with lot of stress that also could kill them.

I wonder if, now that only two whales are still alive, and with the transfer delayed, would be any chance for them to go to Loro Parque. Not perfect either, but maybe the best option now that they seem to have fixed the bad management issues.
 
Merintia said:
I wonder if, now that only two whales are still alive, and with the transfer delayed, would be any chance for them to go to Loro Parque. Not perfect either, but maybe the best option now that they seem to have fixed the bad management issues.
Click to expand...
Not sure if that's a better place for them management wise.:confused:

Really, the best location for them would be Seaworld, but obviously it's highly unlikely they get involved unless they absolutely need to. At the moment, the most difficult part is getting them out of France in the first place.
 
Yes, SeaWorld would be the best. And Orlando have space for them. But I´m afraid that´s almost impossible, since they also seem to be decided to phase out orcas on their parks. Maybe they would accept if the french government totally block the transfer to Japan. Otherwise, the orcas are already sold so no way Marineland will change their mind about that.
 
Sacchi said:
That's very surprising. My money wasn't on her being one of the whales moving. I wonder how she will cope as I assume Kobe will be doing traditional style shows which she hasn't done in well over a decade.
Click to expand...
Yes and quite unfortunate as now Lynn is without her mother for the first time. Nagoya did not want to give Stella away but had to due to her being owned by Granvista is what regulars to the park have been saying. Over the next week or so Ran from Kamogawa will be joining Stella so at least she will not be alone for too long. Quite the sad situation though.
 
Jonathan Petersson said:
Yes and quite unfortunate as now Lynn is without her mother for the first time. Nagoya did not want to give Stella away but had to due to her being owned by Granvista is what regulars to the park have been saying. Over the next week or so Ran from Kamogawa will be joining Stella so at least she will not be alone for too long. Quite the sad situation though.
Click to expand...
Yeah, and it's interesting the ownership group selected Stella for transfer from Nagoya. Perhaps this boils down to the fact they believe she'll be a reliable whale for Suma come opening time - otherwise it really doesn't make sense why she'd be chosen over Earth or Lynn.

Has it been confirmed that Ran is joining here? I'm almost certain Kamogawa will be sending over only one whale now, with the French move in doubt - I don't really see them giving up a pair of their orcas, leaving themselves with only a pair. And Ran is definitely the best candidate; although as we know now, Granvista could end up sending any of the four.
 
Jambo said:
Yeah, and it's interesting the ownership group selected Stella for transfer from Nagoya. Perhaps this boils down to the fact they believe she'll be a reliable whale for Suma come opening time - otherwise it really doesn't make sense why she'd be chosen over Earth or Lynn.

Has it been confirmed that Ran is joining here? I'm almost certain Kamogawa will be sending over only one whale now, with the French move in doubt - I don't really see them giving up a pair of their orcas, leaving themselves with only a pair. And Ran is definitely the best candidate; although as we know now, Granvista could end up sending any of the four.
Click to expand...

I don't believe it's straight up confirmed but sources suggest it most definitely will be Ran.
 
Jambo said:
Yeah, and it's interesting the ownership group selected Stella for transfer from Nagoya. Perhaps this boils down to the fact they believe she'll be a reliable whale for Suma come opening time - otherwise it really doesn't make sense why she'd be chosen over Earth or Lynn.

Has it been confirmed that Ran is joining here? I'm almost certain Kamogawa will be sending over only one whale now, with the French move in doubt - I don't really see them giving up a pair of their orcas, leaving themselves with only a pair. And Ran is definitely the best candidate; although as we know now, Granvista could end up sending any of the four.
Click to expand...
Earth and Lynn are owned by Nagoya only Stella is owned by Granvista hence why she was transferred from the facility
 
BlobfishBoy said:
I would assume it’s because Stella has proven to be a dependable breeder.
Click to expand...
I was thinking along the same lines, especially if they ever needed her to return to Kamogawa for breeding purposes or to lead the pod.

Probably likely she'll be involved with the breeding program again, but at her age, it'll be a testament to see if she can.
 
Lynn has always belonged to Nagoya as she was born there.

Kamogawa sold Earth to Nagoya in 2016 for $400,000, probably because he was directly related to all their females and surplus to requirements, and they were doing AI with SeaWorld at the time. Nagoya probably just wanted to secure another whale for display, even if he couldn't be used as a breeder.

Still, I thought Nagoya were participating in the Kobe project and would send a whale. Maybe they backed out when the French whales became unavailable to breed Lynn or Earth with, and Kamogawa responded by taking back Stella?. Nagoya didn't seem happy about her going.
 
Last edited:
Seems a silly way of doing it as they are leaving Nagoya without a dominant female, disregarding the ownership issue it would have made more sense to move Lynn and potentially either Lara or Ran 2 to form a pod of their own, though that still leaves Kobe without a dominant female. I wonder if they would want to breed their females with Keijo due to him being inbred? Unless they are still hoping for the move to go ahead and have Wikie become the dominant female at Nagoya and maybe send Keijo to Kamogawa, should they want to breed their females with him.
 
Indeed. I doubt Stella moving was in the original plan, however Kobe is opening in 2 months and needed whales quickly. I assume that if the Marineland whales ever go to Japan, Stella could be returned or exchanged for Lynn.

They went from having 3 males to breed with, to having one inbred, unproven, potentially sickly whale. It wouldn't surprise me if the deal fell through.
 
Sacchi said:
Indeed. I doubt Stella moving was in the original plan, however Kobe is opening in 2 months and needed whales quickly. I assume that if the Marineland whales ever go to Japan, Stella could be returned or exchanged for Lynn.

They went from having 3 males to breed with, to having one inbred, unproven, potentially sickly whale. It wouldn't surprise me if the deal fell through.
Click to expand...
Personally I feel like the deal will still go through as long as the French government eventually allows it. Japan is desperate for some genetic diversity and I have a hard time seeing where else it could come from other than the French whales or AI.
 
The greed of marine parks continues to disappoint. If, as is likely the case, no orcas are good candidates to be moved to Kobe Suma without causing distress and disrupting the social structure of their pods, Granvista and these parks need to do right by their orcas and just not move them. If Kobe Suma cared about these orcas, then they’d scrap their plans for an orca show upon learning that all these orcas need their current pods, but they want orcas to be their main attraction. The only silver lining is that Stella could possibly be reunited with one of her other daughters, but Lynn and Earth will likely never see their mother and grandmother again. An Instagram account called InherentlyWild has posted an extremely disturbing video of Stella crying out so loudly during the transfer process that her screams could be heard from outside the park.
 
Last edited:
At this point, I'd rather the transfer just go through and they get out of Marineland ASAP. It's pretty clear that something is up with their conditions, management, and/or care and keeping them stuck in France, waiting for a sanctuary that doesn't exist, isn't gonna help.
 
BlobfishBoy said:
At this point, I'd rather the transfer just go through and they get out of Marineland ASAP. It's pretty clear that something is up with their conditions, management, and/or care and keeping them stuck in France, waiting for a sanctuary that doesn't exist, isn't gonna help.
Click to expand...
In my opinion, staying at Marineland in its current state isn’t a good option for these orcas, but neither is having their pod forcibly separated to be placed in the quite frankly shamefully small tanks of Kamogawa, Kobe Suma, and/or to a lesser extent Port of Nagoya. I wish that the French government had the power to take control of the facility on animal cruelty grounds and consult some experts, perhaps from a better marine park like SeaWorld, to help them improve Marineland’s poor conditions while Wikie and Keijo’s fate is decided. The Whale Sanctuary Project has been actively making their case to the French government, so hopefully a decision will be made soon while we wait for the results of the court-ordered independent assessment (which, presumably, will not be good).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top