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Heather Burris
ENGL 110A 008
Prof. Bruner
11.10.2014
Research Paper
Captivity of Killers
Since Orca whales have been taken captive in the early 1900s, there has been a lot of
debate on if the orcas being captured and put into parks is morally right. Many people argue that
orcas are wild animals. It wasnt until this massive breed of dolphin started attacking the
caretakers that everyone really began to notice how dangerous these animals truly are.
Orca whales are to be referred to as orcas rather than a killer whale; the word killer
has a negative connotation which could, in reality, be applied to all predator species, including
humans (Dagg). The orcas have lived peacefully all their lives in the wild, it is only in captivity
where they become violent, so there is no point in giving them a negative name if they are
actually beautiful and majestic creatures that are very unique.
Orcas have lived peacefully off the Pacific coast and the coast of Iceland for many years,
only traveling when the water temperature changed with the seasons. Wild orcas are very
friendly creatures and have actually gone up to sides of boats to view and study the humans on
board. In the wild, there has been no record of any orcas harming humans (Blackfish). Up until
the orcas were being captured, they lived peaceful lives that was only considered somewhat
violent when they played with their food.

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Orcas that are in captivity have been studied to see if there are any possible emotional
changes. It was noted that captivity alters their behavior, leading to unpredictable aggression
(Mccarthy). This again brings up the fact that orcas are wild animals and such a large wild
animal should not be held captive in a tank away from their family. Orcas will always be wild
animals and should not be held captive for show at the expense of a humans life.
Orcas are remarkable animals that have been studied tremendously. The mother has such
a strong bond with her baby that it seems to be stronger than a human mothers bond with her
child. Studies have shown that orcas have a more developed emotional sensor in their brain than
any other animal ever reported (Blackfish). The bond seems to be so strong that when something
happens to one of the pod members, all the orcas will mourn over the member and make sounds
that could potentially resemble crying.
Sea World knows all too well about the captivity of orcas. Since they acquired Tilikum
(the orca you see when you watch Free Willy), there have been numerous occasions where the
trainers and staff have been attacked. Tilikum was transferred to Sea World after attacking and
killing a woman in Sea Land, although the staff at Sea World was never told about the true cause
of death at Sea Land (Blackfish). During the time that Tilikum has been in captivity at Sea
World, there have been at least seventy attacks/deaths by orcas that have been covered up by Sea
World officials (Blackfish). The officials will go on to say that the deaths and attacks are due to
trainer error instead of admitting that the orcas are dangerous.
Because of the size of the animal and the inability to provide a home that is large enough
to house the orca in, orcas are forced into pools that are too small for them. Some scientists agree
that keeping orcas in a concrete pool causes them to turn on and even attack their trainers
(Scauzillo). This furthers the idea that orcas are wild animals with wild instincts and always will

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be. They are creatures of instinct and will act on intuition that they themselves have at birth.
Many people, including scientists, believe that orcas should simply not be held in captivity
(Mccarthy). The orcas are calm and friendly in the wild but being in captivity turns them into
beasts that will attack at some point in time with the time unknown but the general outcome
unavoidable unless these animals can be put back into their natural habitat.
Tilikum is still to this day, in Sea World Orlando. Despite Tilikum attacking and killing
numerous people, Sea World still uses him (Blackfish). Sea World tries to maintain the
innocence of the animal, but building an interpretation of orcas on constant lies is not the way to
do it. Officials say it is trainer error or accidental drowning, but never admits the fact that they
still have wild animals in their care. The self-awareness that orcas have should enlighten just
how special these animals are. They are one of only a handful of animals, including humans and
chimps, with self-awareness (Derakhshani).
The orcas know what they are doing when they drag a human down to the bottom of the
pool and drown them or eat them. Do they do it out of frustration of being in an enclosure that is
entirely too small? Or out of knowledge that their treats are running low? No one knows the
answers to this because orcas are wild animals and, when taken in captivity, will become
aggressive and at some point in time try and lash out.

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Works Cited
Blackfish. Perf. Tilikum. Gabriela Cowperthwaite, 2013.
Dagg, Anne Innis. The Social Behavior of Older Animals. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP,
2008. Print.
Derakhshani, Tirdad. "Orcas in Captivity, and Stress." Tribune Business News (2013): n.
pag. Web. 06 Nov. 2014.
Mccarthy, Michael. "Are Captive 'killers' Telling Us Something?; There Is No Record of
Orcas Killing Humans in the Wild. So Why Do They Attack People in Captivity When They
Don't in the Wild?" The Spectator (n.d.): n. pag. Web. 27 Feb. 2010.
Scauzillo, Steve. "The Green Way: Movie 'Blackfish' Makes You Want to See Whales in
Nature, Not Pools." Whittier Daily News (2013): n. pag. Web. 7 Nov. 2014.