LAST DOLPHIN DIES AT MARINELAND

After spending over three decades imprisoned inside a small concrete pool Kelly, Marineland's 38-year-old performing dolphin, died last Thursday. Her death marks the end of a sad era in New Zealand's history. Kelly was the last surviving captive dolphin in New Zealand. SAFE will now take action to ensure it never happens again. More...

Kelly's death takes the death toll at Marineland to 71 dolphins. This shameful total demonstrates the effects captivity has on these intelligent marine animals.

Since Kelly's death Marineland's doors have been shut and the Napier City Council has called for a special public consultation process to decide the future of this outdated marine zoo.

"As the Government will not allow Marineland to acquire more dolphins, the possibility of Marineland continuing in its present form seems remote," says SAFE campaign director Hans Kriek

"The dolphins were the main attraction and brought in paying customers. The remaining 50 animals, mostly seals and penguins, are unlikely to attract sufficient visitors to ensure a viable financial future for the zoo."

The decision not to replace Marineland's dolphins has been welcomed by the New Zealand animal protection movement. New Zealand's Marine Mammal Protection Act now needs to be tightened up to ensure that a ban on keeping cetaceans in captivity will become enshrined in law. To that end WSPA, the RNZSPCA, Project Jonah, WDCS and SAFE have formed a coalition to lobby the Government to permanently close the door on the country's captive dolphin industry.

"There is compelling evidence that keeping dolphins in captivity is inhumane and cruel," says Hans. "No matter how attractive or spacious an enclosure may appear the fact remains that a captive environment can in no way substitute for the vast ocean that these mammals naturally inhabit and which is essential to meeting their complex behavioural and social needs."

"Keeping these wonderful animals in captivity stems from a time when there was little regard for animal welfare and the suffering animals go through in the name of human entertainment. Those dark days are long gone, and it's time to stop the cycle of cruelty by not condemning more dolphins to a miserable life in captivity."

SAFE has campaigned for many years to bring an end to the captive dolphin industry in New Zealand.

"SAFE showed the public the dark side of keeping dolphins in small concrete pools and I believe that our efforts were instrumental in changing public attitudes and now it seems also the Government's."

"The death of Kelly almost brings closure to SAFE's campaign in New Zealand but we will continue to urge people to not visit marine parks when travelling overseas," says Hans

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DOLPHIN FACTS

• Half of the world's captive dolphins die due to the cruelty of their capture and confinement, with intestinal disease, chlorine poisoning and stress-related illness among the causes of death.

• In the wild, dolphins may travel hundreds of kilometres a day, reach speeds of 50 kilometres an hour and dive to depths of more than 100 metres. They are highly social mammals and form close and complex relationships with their podmates.

• In the wild, dolphins spend as much time as they can under water and only 10 to 20 percent of their time on the surface. Some captive dolphins, especially those kept in tanks, spend most of their time in a stupor, swimming repeatedly in small circles or simply lying motionless on the surface of the water. These are signs of psychological distress. Some captive dolphins also develop ulcers, self-mutilate and become aggressive.

• The behaviours observed at marine parks - eating dead fish, jumping through hoops and allowing people to ride on their dorsal fins - are completely contrary to a dolphin's true nature and teach the public nothing about the real lives of these fascinating creatures.

• Marine parks foster a false portrayal of dolphins as benign. Dolphins are carnivores capable of injuring other dolphins, marine animals and people. Marine parks also teach people that it is acceptable to capture and confine wild animals.