The holding of cetaceans (whales,
dolphins and porpoises) in captivity dates back to the 1800s. The first
cetaceans held in captivity were a pair of belugas, captured in Canada in 1861,
and held in PT Barnum’s American Museum in New York [1]. In total he took nine
belugas into captivity, but due to being unable to keep them alive for too
long, he eventually stopped taking belugas by 1865 [1]. The industry gained
momentum in the 1960s, due to the movie and TV show Flipper [2]. Since then, cetaceans have been held in captivity on
every continent (except for Antarctica).
The UK’s first captive cetaceans were
harbour porpoises held at the Brighton Aquarium as early as 1874 [3]. A female
beluga whale also survived for only four days at the Westminster Aquarium in
1877 [4]. The following year, another beluga replaced the one at Westminster
Aquarium, and an additional two were sent to Manchester and Blackpool,
supposedly supplied by PT Burnam [5].
As with the global industry, the UK
dolphinarium industry took off from the 1960s. The first purpose built
dolphinarium was at Flamingo Land in Yorkshire in 1963 [6]. Over a 30 year
period, more than 30 dolphinariums and travelling shows existed in the UK, housing approximately 300
dolphins [7]. Some of the facilities were only seasonal shows, whereas the
majority were permanent fixtures. Of the species kept, the most popular were
bottlenose dolphins, but the UK also held 8 orcas, and belugas and pilot whales
temporarily. For a full list of the facilities where the dolphins were held,
see below.
The conditions that the UK’s captive
cetaceans were kept in were extremely inadequate, due to a lack of regulation.
Many were held in swimming pools meant for people or in indoor facilities with
no natural light. It wasn’t until 1984 that the Zoo Licensing Act came into
place, which enforced some husbandry standards. However, after a review of UK
dolphinariums it was deemed that many facilities were not keeping dolphins in
appropriate conditions. A report titled ‘A Review of Dolphinaria’ by Klinowska
and Brown concluded that their recommendations for holding cetaceans in
captivity, such as increasing the pool size, should be implemented no later
than 1993 [6].
For many years, the keeping of cetaceans
in captivity was fiercely opposed, which in 1991 sparked the project Into The
Blue. Supported by the Born Free Foundation and World Society of Protection of
Animals, the group campaigned to close the remaining dolphinariums in the UK
and also release a select few dolphins. The chosen candidates were Rocky from
Marineland Morecambe, and Missie and Silver from Brighton Aquarium. They were
transferred to a rehabilitation pen in the Caribbean in early 1991, and then
released from the West Caicos Island in September 1991 [6].
After the phasing out of dolphinariums,
the final dolphins housed in the UK at Flamingo Land were sent to a facility in
Europe in 1993 [6]. There has never been any cetaceans in captivity in the UK
since then.
Currently, under UK law it is still
legal to house cetaceans in captivity. However, the requirements to house them
have been set to such a high standard, that no facility has been willing to
implement them, and therefore, will not hold cetaceans.
List
of UK dolphinariums
* = seasonal show / ** = held orcas
60s
+ Blackpool Dolphinarium (Blackpool, England) - 1969*
70s
+ Gwrych Castle (Abergele, Wales) - 1970*
+ Durley Chine (Bournemouth, England) – 1970*
+ Weymouth Dolphinarium (Weymouth, England) - 1971*
+ Battersea Park Dolphinarium (London, England) - 1971 - 1973
+ London Dolphinarium (London, England) - 1971 – 1973
+ Southsea Dolphinarium (Portsmouth, England) - 1973*
+ Cleethorpes Marineland & Zoo (Cleethorpes, England) - 1966 - 1974**
(Calypso)
+ Porthcawl Dolphinarium (Porthcawl, Wales) - 1971 - 1974
+ Dudley Zoo (Dudley, England) - 1971 - 1974** (Cuddles)
+ South Elmsall Animal Training School And Dolphinarium (South Elmsall,
England) - 1972 - 1974
+ Rhyl Dolphinarium (Rhyl, Wales) - 1972 - 1974
+ Brean Down Dolphinarium (Brean Down, England) - 1974*
+ Southend Dolphinarium (Southend-on-Sea, England) - 1970 - 1975
+ Skegness Dolphinarium (Skegness, England) - 1972 - 1975
+ Coventry Zoo Dolphinarium (Coventry, England) - 1972 - 1975
+ Ocean Park (Sunderland, England) - 1973 - 1975
+ Royalty Folies (London, England) - 1974*
+ Sandown Dolphinarium (Isle Of Wight, England) - 1974 - 1975
+ West Midlands Safari Park Dolphinarium (Kidderminster, England) - 1975*
+ Queen’s Motel Dolphinarium (Margate, England) - 1969 - 1977
80s
+ Woburn Safari Park Dolphinarium (Woburn, England) - 1973 - 1983
+ Scarborough Marineland and Zoo (Scarborough, England) - 1969 - 1984
+ Blair Drummond Safari Park Dolphinarium (Stirling, Scotland) - 1974 -
1984
+ Clacton Pier Dolphinarium (Clacton-on-Sea, England) - 1971 - 1985**
(Unnamed, Suzi Wong/Hoi Wai, Neptune, Nemo)
+ Knowsley Safari Park Dolphinarium (Knowsley, England) - 1972 - 1985
+ Whipsnade Zoo (Whipsnade, England) - 1972 - 1988
90s
+ Marineland (Morecambe, England) - 1964 - 1990
+ Brighton Aquarium and Dolphinarium (Brighton, England) - 1968 - 1990
+ Windsor Safari Park (Windsor, England) - 1970 - 1992** (Ramu
3/Winston, Suzi Wong/Hoi Wai, Winnie, Nemo)
+ Flamingo Land (Kirby, England) - 1963 - 1993** (Cuddles)
References
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