The Blackfish debate

The Twittersphere was abuzz last night with opinions about Blackfish, the documentary about one of Seaworld’s orca whales, Tilikum, who killed a trainer during a live show.

The publicity surrounding the film has led to many people calling for Seaworld to be closed down, due to the conditions the whales and other creatures are kept in.

Blackfish first came to my attention when I saw it mentioned in a small corner of a newspaper film section at some point over the summer, overshadowed by the big blockbusters of the week, but carrying an important message. It didn’t have a large scale cinematic release, showing at a few select cinemas across the country and being released on DVD immediately afterwards.

I was mainly drawn to it as I visited Seaworld in Orlando several times as a child, so I ordered the DVD  as soon as it was released, and watched it immediately. I loved my visits to Seaworld as a child, when a Shamu cuddly toy was the most exciting thing in existence (hands up, to this day I still own three) and before any concept of a moral code has kicked in.

To my adult self, the concept of watching dolphins jumping through hoops, whales  performing to the crowds in pools nowhere big enough for their body mass, and yes, even the Clyde and Seamore sealion show, sits very uncomfortably. Animals should not be forced to perform tricks or carry out actions that they would not do in the wild, especially not for the entertainment of the human race. From this standpoint, it is clear that Seaworld need to make some changes. However, what Blackfish didn’t mention, and what very few naysayers seem to have taken into account is that:

• Seaworld is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, meaning that they have met or exceeded standards in education, conservation and research.

• The SeaWorld& Busch Gardens Conservation Fund  is a charity which helps a variety of conservation groups around the world, working towards Species Research, Habitat Protection, Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation, and Conservation Education. 

The fund has several professional partners including the WWF, which is largely seen as the most influential wildlife and conservation organisation in the world, and the Rainforest Alliance. It is highly doubtful that such organisations would have anything to do with the SBGCF is their work was questionable in any way.  Having looked into their work it seems that they do not do any conservation work directly, rather their fund offers financial help to others who do, which disappointingly suggests that the animals they hold in captivity have no conservation purpose, but rather are purely for visitor entertainment.

Seaworld make no attempt to hide their commerciality, with theme park rollercoasters included in the ticket price, and this is their downfall. Allowing human interaction with the creatures is what has brought them into the spotlight (there have been NO recorded incidents of an orca whale killing a human in the wild, but Blackfish highlights several such incidents in captivity).

It is my belief that there is a place in the world for Seaworld, but they need to rethink their priorities – mainly by abolishing their principles of keeping animals in small enclosures and forcing them to perform for the public. Blackfish may have kickstarted a revolution, not just regarding the Seaworld parks, but in zoos and animal captivity businesses all over the world.

What do you think? Should Seaworld be shut down? Share your thoughts in the comments section below, on Twitter @WildWorldBlog, or on Facebook.

See the Blackfish movie site here. Particularly interesting is Seaworld’s response to the film.