The first time I went to the zoo I went to the dolphin show. I was amazed by how smart and friendly they seemed. I wonder now as i look back how happy were they in captivity really? My essays on why Orcas shouldn't be in captivity. I'm gonna talk about: how they live in the wild, how they are taken into captivity and why, and the effects of them being taken into captivity. First is how they live in the wild.

According to National Marine Mammal laboratory, female orcas can live 70 to 80 years. Where as males can live about 50 to 60.There dorsal fin stands up straight which is a sign of a healthy orcha. In the wild they swim about a 100 miles a day. Defenders of wildlife say that orcas swim in groups called pods. Orcas are very close with there pod they never separate and very rarely get in fights. They often work together to catch a meal with usually consists of: fish, squid, birds, and other marine animals. Second is how they are taken into captivity and why.

Orcas are taken into captivity for entertainment and making money. The documentary Black Fish shows that orcas are chased down with boats. They herd them together and throw bombs at them to scare them. Once they get them together they drop down a fence separate the young from the parents. You would expect the parents to leave once they are let go but they usually try to swim back in to save the young ones. Then they transfer the orcas in very small metal crates. Its not out of the ordinary for a few to die in the capture process.To cover it up they slit open the dead whales and put rocks in them, and then tie a anchor to the orcas tail. Last is the effects of them being in captivity.

CNN states that in captivity very few orcas make it to midlife. In captivity most orcas die in their teens or twenties. Former whale trainer Dr. Astrid van Ginneken says that many orcas in captivity have a collapsed dorsal fin because of lack of exercise, low hydration,warmer water temperatures, and pattern of swimming. There most common death in captivity is infection due to weak immune system because of chronic stress.Orcas would have to swim 1,900 times around the main pool to equal the amount they swim in the wild. They survive off small frozen fish.They often get in fights due to the lack of space. There are many injuries and deaths to people and orcas.

That was: how they live in the wild, how they are captured and why, and the effects of them being taken into captivity. Today I talked about why orcas should not be held in captivity. I think it is very wrong to take them out of their natural habitat and deprive them from there freedom. Now that I know about this I don't think I will ever be able to go back to a zoo or aquarium again. I like the quote “The question is not can they reason nor can they talk but can they suffer?” by Jeremy Bentham. They have cracked down on aquariums a little bit but not enough. I would rather never see a orca then see one in captivity.