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Tourism in Marine Environments, Vol. 13, No. 2–3, pp. 73–83 1544-273X/18 $60.00 + .00
Printed in the USA. All rights reserved. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3727/154427318X15225564602926
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73
Address correspondence to Naomi A. Rose, Animal Welfare Institute, 900 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003, USA.
E-mail: naomi@awionline.org
The intelligence that allows these species to be
trained to perform in fantastic entertainment spec-
tacles leads to the obvious ethical question of
whether they should be held in captivity in the first
instance (White, 2000). However, in the past few
years this controversy has intensified, after trainers
Introduction
For decades, controversy has attended the pub-
lic display of captive cetaceans, particularly killer
whales (also known as orcas), Orcinus orca (see
e.g., Leiren-Young, 2016; Ventre & Jett, 2015).
THE BLACKFISH EFFECT: CORPORATE AND POLICY CHANGE IN THE
FACE OF SHIFTING PUBLIC OPINION ON CAPTIVE CETACEANS
E. C. M. PARSONS* AND NAOMI A. ROSE†
*Department of Environmental Science & Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA
†Animal Welfare Institute, Washington, DC, USA
In February 2010, a captive killer whale (Orcinus orca), or orca, killed his trainer at SeaWorld
Florida. A cascade of events followed, including successful federal enforcement action against Sea-
World for employee safety violations. In 2012 and 2015, nonfiction books about SeaWorld’s history
with orcas were published; however, the 2013 documentary Blackfish has done the most to raise
public awareness of captive orca welfare and trainer safety. It spawned a massive social media
response, leading to the so-called “Blackfish Effect.” SeaWorld’s visitor numbers declined, busi-
ness partners ended their relationships, and stock price plummeted. In 2012, Georgia Aquarium in
Atlanta applied for a permit to import 18 wild-caught beluga whales from Russia; the permit was
denied in 2013, the first time a public display permit had ever been denied in the history of the US
Marine Mammal Protection Act. In 2014 and 2016, the California legislature considered bills phas-
ing out captive orca exhibits in the state; the 2016 bill passed and became law in January 2017. In
November 2015, a similar bill was introduced (and reintroduced in March 2017) in the US House
of Representatives. In March 2016 SeaWorld announced it would end its orca breeding program
company-wide and in January 2018 the Vancouver Aquarium announced it would no longer display
cetaceans. Shifts in public perception of captive cetacean display strongly suggest policy makers
should reconsider the legislative and regulatory status quo.
Key words: Killer whale; Orcinus orca; SeaWorld; Blackfish; Legislation; Captivity;
Public display
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74 PARSONS AND ROSE
The US Occupational Safety and Health Admin-
istration (OSHA) cited SeaWorld for the Florida
incident in August 2010 (Grove, 2010; Parsons,
2012). SeaWorld challenged the citation, with
hearings held in September and November 2011.
During the hearings, SeaWorld logbooks presented
as exhibits (dating back to 1988) revealed almost
100 incidents of dangerous orca behavior,3 result-
ing in a dozen serious injuries4 (Parsons, 2012). In
subsequent cross-examination, it became apparent
these were likely an underestimate of the number
of serious incidents, as several verified reports of
dangerous behavior had not been entered into the
logbooks (Black, 2011; Howard-Fishburne, 2011;
Tompkins, 2011). A Department of Labor adminis-
trative law judge upheld the citation in 2012.5 Sea-
World appealed in 2013; the appeals court denied
SeaWorld’s request for a review in 20146 (see
summary of the original case in Parsons, 2012).
Following Brancheau’s death, two nonfiction
books were published about SeaWorld’s history
with orcas and the human deaths and injuries noted
above: Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark
Side of Killer Whales in Captivity by David Kirby
(2012) and Beneath the Surface: Killer Whales,
SeaWorld, and the Truth Beyond Blackfish by
John Hargrove and Howard Chua-Eoan (2015).
Both gained considerable media attention, includ-
ing author interviews on Anderson Cooper and
The Daily Show.7 However, Blackfish has argu-
ably done the most to raise public awareness of
captive orca welfare and trainer safety. It spawned
a massive social media response related to cap-
tive cetaceans, leading to the so-called “Blackfish
Effect” (see e.g., Chattoo, 2016).
were killed in 2009 and 2010 by orcas going
“off behavior” (refusing trainer commands) (see
Parsons, 2012, and below).
Despite this perpetual controversy, visiting facili-
ties with performing cetaceans remained universally
popular as a tourism choice until recently, with the
release of the documentary film Blackfish in 2013.
The idea that film can lead to shifts in societal
perceptions about appropriate or desirable tour-
ism choices is not new. However, generally these
influences are perceived as promotional market-
ing or advertising (Hudson & Ritchie, 2006). A
feature film or documentary may persuade the
viewing public that the topic portrayed would be
a desirable feature of a future tourism experience—
for example, the feature film Free Willy may have
led to a boom in the whale-watching industry
(Wearing, Buchmann, & Jobberns, 2011). How-
ever, it is less common for film to influence people
to turn away from a previously popular tourism
choice. Blackfish is a unique example of the lat-
ter and has led to a series of notable societal, cor-
porate, and policy changes, in several countries,
which are summarized and discussed below.
Background
In February 2010, Tilikum,1 a 12,000 lb. captive
male orca, killed his trainer, Dawn Brancheau, at
SeaWorld Florida; this was the third human fatality
with which this specific whale had been associated
(Parsons, 2012) (see Table 1). Another SeaWorld
whale, unrelated to Tilikum and held at a Spanish
facility, had killed his trainer only 9 weeks earlier2
(Parsons, 2012) (Table 1).
Table 1
Human Fatalities From Captive Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) Attacks
Date Victim Location Whale(s) Involved Injuries and/or Cause of Death
Feb. 24, 2010 Dawn Brancheau SeaWorld, Orlando,
FL, USA Tilikum Blunt force trauma: Broken jaw, spine, ribs,
dislocated elbow/knee, severed arm, skull
exposed (drowning also indicated, but
water in sinuses was minimal)
Dec. 24, 2009 Alexis Martínez Loro Parque, Canary
Islands Keto Blunt force trauma: Multiple compression
fractures, lacerated internal organs
July 6, 1999 Daniel Dukes SeaWorld, Orlando,
FL, USA Tilikum Drowning: Body was covered in multiple
pre- and postmortem bruises and abrasions
Feb. 21, 1991 Keltie Byrne Sealand of the Pacific,
Victoria, British
Columbia, Canada
Tilikum
Haida 2
Nootka 4
Drowning
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THE BLACKFISH EFFECT 75
2012). The film featured interviews with a selec-
tion of cetacean scientists, former orca trainers, and
one person who had been involved historically in
capturing orcas in the US. The commentary from
former trainers (at least eight were featured) was
the most novel aspect of the film; advocacy oppos-
ing the display of captive orcas is as old as the prac-
tice of displaying them (Leiren-Young, 2016), but
the authors of this advocacy were primarily non-
profit organizations and their representatives prior
to 2010 (Kirby, 2012). The perspective of trainers
(current or former) had been noticeably absent.
These former trainers spoke on camera, several for
the first time, of their behind-the-scenes experi-
ences with captive orcas. Contrary to the promo-
tional rhetoric of spokespeople for public display
facilities in the past, several recounted incidents
where they felt they had been misinformed; their
safety had been threatened; the welfare of animals
had suffered (in their view) through decisions made
by management; and the public had been misled
about the animals’ welfare.
An Evidence-Based Approach
Several points made in the film were based on
information from the peer-reviewed scientific lit-
erature, consultation with leading cetacean experts
and lawyers, eyewitness statements, and court docu-
mentation and police reports and/or autopsy results
(Parsons, 2012). The filmmakers invited represen-
tatives of SeaWorld to be interviewed for the docu-
mentary, but they declined to participate (as noted
in the film). Nevertheless, company representatives
characterized Blackfish as factually incorrect.9 The
filmmakers subsequently provided a rebuttal to the
list of these criticisms (Renninger, 2013).
An example of these criticisms was that the
film mispresented orca life expectancies. However,
Blackfish accurately noted that male orcas in north-
east Pacific populations (for which life history data
are most complete) have a maximum estimated life
span of 60–70 years (Ford, 2009) and female orcas
have a maximum estimated life span of 80–90
(Ford, 2009). In contrast, captive orcas of either
sex rarely live longer than 30 years, with many
dying in their teens and 20s (Jett & Ventre, 2015;
Robeck, Willis, Scarpuzzi, & O’Brien, 2015; Small
& Demaster, 1995).
This review’s objective is to describe the impact,
on SeaWorld in particular (as the focus of Black-
fish) and captive cetacean display generally, of the
“Blackfish Effect.” We offer evidence that it is a
genuine social phenomenon, leading to substan-
tive corporate, legislative, and regulatory changes
affecting the display of captive cetaceans.
Blackfish
Blackfish was directed by Gabriela Cowperth-
waite. Cowperthwaite’s previous directorial experi-
ence was a documentary on lacrosse (Internet Movie
Database [IMDb], 2016a) and she was not involved
in any animal rights activism prior to making Black-
fish. Blackfish cost $76,000 to make and debuted
at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2013. Its
total gross revenue was more than $2 million at the
US box office for its distributor, Magnolia Pictures
(The Numbers, 2013). The film was nominated for
numerous awards (IMDb, 2016b), including from
the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
The new film division of the Cable News
Network (CNN) acquired the television rights to
Blackfish at Sundance. CNN premiered the film
on October 24, 2013, reprising it at least 25 times
in the following weeks. For the initial airing, sci-
entists and experts, as well as former orca train-
ers featured in the film and the filmmakers, were
recruited to simultaneously provide facts and sup-
porting information via Twitter, to participate in a
Crossfire segment (a long-running current affairs
debate TV show on CNN) with a representative of
the public display community,8 and to write blogs
(Rose, 2013). The Twitter hashtags #Blackfish and
#Blackfishthemovie “trended” during the initial
showing, with nearly 70,000 documentary-related
Tweets seen by 7.3 million people (Rogers, 2013;
Wright et al., 2015). In 2013 alone, CNN reported
that 21 million viewers watched the documentary
(CNN, 2014). Subsequently Blackfish was acquired
by the Netflix “on demand” video service.
The documentary described the deaths and inju-
ries of orca trainers and others, in particular the
deaths of SeaWorld trainer Brancheau, part-time
Sealand trainer Keltie Byrne, and Loro Parque trainer
Alexis Martinez (Parsons, 2012). It reported on the
regulatory and litigation responses to Brancheau’s
death and the subsequent OSHA citation (Parsons,
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76 PARSONS AND ROSE
SeaWorld also saw a decrease in attendance
at its parks, with 1 million fewer people visiting
SeaWorld in 2014 over the previous year (“Sea-
World Entertainment, Inc. Reports,” 2015). The
company also saw its stock drop; share prices
decreased 45% from a high in mid-2013 to mid-
2014, including a 1-day plummet of 33% on
August 13, 2014, when the company released its
second quarter report (Solomon, 2014). In all,
during 2014, SeaWorld lost more than $80 mil-
lion in revenue (a 6% decrease), according to its
annual earnings report (“SeaWorld Entertainment,
Inc. Reports,” 2015). This decline in revenue and
visitor numbers has continued (Russon, 2017a,
2017b), with the company reporting 353,000 fewer
visitors in the first half of 2017 when compared
to the beginning of 2016 (Russon, 2017a). The
company had assumed negative publicity from
Blackfish would recede and visitor numbers and
revenue would rebound, but these did not happen
(Russon, 2017a).
In August 2015, the fourth in a series of class-
action lawsuits11 was filed, with evidence of what
“attorneys allege[d] to be the misrepresented and
undisclosed truth about the conditions and treat-
ment of SeaWorld’s captive orcas” (MarketWatch,
2015). A shareholders’ lawsuit12 was also launched,
with the plaintiffs contending that SeaWorld had
withheld the financial impact of Blackfish from
shareholders. E-mails released during the discov-
ery phase of the latter case revealed that executives
were indeed secretly tracking revenue lost because
of the documentary’s impact (Weisberg & Russon,
2017). The withholding of information about the
financial impacts of Blackfish has led to paral-
lel criminal investigations into SeaWorld’s finan-
cial disclosures by the US Department of Justice
and the US Securities and Exchange Commission
(Swenson, 2017).
Public Display Import Permit Denial
In 2012, Georgia Aquarium applied for a Marine
Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) permit to import
18 belugas for the purpose of public display.13 The
belugas had been captured in the Sea of Okhotsk,
Russia. This was the first MMPA request to import
wild-caught cetaceans in 20 years. During the
public comment period for the permit application,
Mortality rates of orcas in marine theme parks
are a matter of record, especially in the US, where
births, transfers, and deaths of captive marine mam-
mals must be recorded in a database mandated by
the US Marine Mammal Protection Act [16 USC §
1374 (c) (10)]. Small and DeMaster (1995) reported
an annual mortality rate for captive orcas that was,
at that time, 2.5 times higher than in the northeast
Pacific populations. A recent peer-reviewed study
using different methodologies—the Kaplan-Meier
and Cox proportional hazard models—noted that
captive orca survival rates had improved, but
that captive orca “survival to age milestones [is]
poor when compared to wild killer whales” (Jett
& Ventre, 2015, p. 1362). Another recent article
(Robeck et al., 2015) also noted survivorship
improvement, but found current SeaWorld orca
survival rates are now similar to those in the north-
east Pacific, where populations have subsequently
been designated as endangered and threatened.10
The Blackfish Effect
There was a high level of interest in the docu-
mentary on social media (Wright et al., 2015). Tra-
ditional media also showed considerable interest
in the topics it raised, promptly noting incidents
involving captive cetaceans, such as deaths, import
attempts, or negative human–cetacean interactions
(e.g., Pedicini, 2015; Wang, 2015). These tradi-
tional media pieces seemed to represent the views
of both sides of the captivity debate more equitably
and to be published more often than before Black-
fish (N. Rose, personal observation).
Economic Impacts on the Company
Within a year of Blackfish’s release, longtime cor-
porate partners cancelled their arrangements with
SeaWorld. For example, Southwest Airlines termi-
nated its 26-year partnership with SeaWorld (Kumar,
2014). Two American football teams, the Miami
Dolphins and the Seattle Seahawks, ended long-
standing associations (Joseph, 2015; Koerner, 2014).
Several well-known musical acts also cancelled
performances at SeaWorld parks (Duke, 2014). In
December 2014, SeaWorld’s Chief Executive Offi-
cer (CEO) Jim Atchison announced his resignation
and was replaced by Joel Manby in April 2015.
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THE BLACKFISH EFFECT 77
facility for display; and the maximum number of
whales that could be held was 15 (4 more than the
current numbers then, to allow for the possibility
of animals held for rescue and rehabilitation) (Cali-
fornia Coastal Commission, 2015). SeaWorld sued
the CCC over these conditions, as the company
believed the CCC had overstepped its authority
under the California Coastal Act (Martin, 2015).
The public relations pressures from the Blue
World situation, coupled with a likely reintroduc-
tion of the Bloom bill, were probable factors in
the decision by SeaWorld to engage with The
Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) in
a series of discussions, which began sometime in
2015 and culminated, in March 2016, with the sud-
den announcement that SeaWorld would volun-
tarily end its orca breeding program (Allen, 2016).
This corporate policy change made opposing AB
2140/2305 moot. SeaWorld withdrew its applica-
tion for a CCC permit (and its lawsuit against the
CCC) soon after (Weisberg, 2016).
Bills similar to AB 2140/2305 were introduced
in other states, although they did not progress.
In New York, Senate Bill 6613 was introduced,
which would prohibit the keeping of orcas in
facilities in New York State.19 In the state of Wash-
ington, Senate Bill 5666-2015-16 and House Bill
2115-2015-16 would prohibit the keeping of any
cetacean.20,21 A federal bill, the Orca Responsi-
bility and Care Advancement (ORCA) Act, was
introduced in November 2015 by Representatives
Adam Schiff (D-California) and Jared Huffman
(D-California), along with several cosponsors.22
The bill did not progress, but was reintroduced
by Schiff in March 2017.23 This bill would result
in a phase out of captive orca display in facilities
throughout the US.
In Canada, the Vancouver Park Board voted to
pass a bylaw in March 2017 that would end the
public display of cetaceans at Vancouver Aquar-
ium (Slattery, 2017). This bylaw was ruled invalid
due to licensing violations by the British Colum-
bia Supreme Court in February 2018, but a month
earlier the Vancouver Aquarium announced vol-
untarily that it would no longer display cetaceans
after the last one, a Pacific white-sided dolphin,
currently displayed dies (Eagland, 2018). The
Aquarium noted that, although it would not with-
draw its lawsuit, whatever the court eventually
the National Marine Fisheries Service received
approximately 9,000 comments, most opposing
the permit. The agency denied the permit based on
substantive legal and scientific grounds in 2013;
however, it is arguable that the political climate
created by the Blackfish Effect influenced the deci-
sion, making the likely legal challenge the permit
applicant would file of less concern to the agency.
Indeed, this was the first time the agency had denied
a public display permit in the 40-year history of the
MMPA—permits were always issued in the past,
some of dubious legality, as lawsuits filed by oppo-
nents of captive cetacean display (successfully and
unsuccessfully) attest.14 Georgia Aquarium did
challenge the denial in court, but it was upheld and
the aquarium chose not to appeal.15
Legislative and Regulatory Initiatives16
In February 2014, Assembly Member Richard
Bloom introduced California Assembly Bill (AB)
2140. This bill would have made it illegal to “hold
in captivity, or use, a wild-caught or captive-bred
orca for performance or entertainment purposes.”17
The bill was heard by the relevant committee in
April 2014, but there was no vote and no further
action was taken in that legislative session.
Bloom reintroduced the bill as AB 2305 in
March 2016. The legislation eventually passed both
houses of the state legislature as part of a budget
trailer bill.18 The “Orca Protection Act” was signed
by California’s governor in September 2016 and
became state law in January 2017. SeaWorld vigor-
ously opposed the bill in 2014, but adopted a neu-
tral position in 2016 (this neutrality may have been
instrumental in the bill’s passage). The company’s
position on this legislation likely changed due to a
chain of events that followed from its “Blue World”
initiative in 2015.
In April 2015, SeaWorld San Diego applied for
a permit from the California Coastal Commission
(CCC) to build “Blue World,” a significant expan-
sion of its existing Shamu Stadium (California
Coastal Commission, 2015). The CCC held a hear-
ing and vote on the permit application on October 8,
2015. The vote was unanimous to issue the permit,
but with the following conditions: SeaWorld would
have to end its orca breeding program in San Diego;
no orcas could be transferred into or out of the
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78 PARSONS AND ROSE
research projects through the National Fish and
Wildlife Federation (SeaWorld, 2017c). SeaWorld
had been criticized for its lack of funding towards
free-ranging cetacean conservation and research,
other than its active participation in stranding net-
works and the rehabilitation of stranded marine
mammals.27 In particular, it had been criticized for
its lack of funding directed toward the protection of
endangered populations of free-ranging orcas (e.g.,
Hodgins, 2014), making this a major shift for the
company.
Within 2 days of this announcement, SeaWorld’s
stock went up by 9.5% in 1 day (Fry, 2016). Nev-
ertheless, SeaWorld has continued to suffer finan-
cially, as noted above, reporting a $30 million
decline in revenue in 2016 when compared to 2015,
and 471,000 fewer visitors over the same time frame
(SeaWorld, 2017d). During the first 9 months of
2017, the company reported a decline in revenue of
$78.9 million, compared to the same period in 2016,
and there were approximately 1.1 million fewer
visitors in the first 9 months of 2017 compared
to the first 9 months of 2016 (SeaWorld, 2017e).
SeaWorld has gone from a thriving company to
one in decline. Its valuation has been cut by almost
half (top share price was approximately $39 in
2013; it was approximately $21.50 in July 2018).
SeaWorld insists its orcas will remain at its parks,28
but it may have no choice but to consider retiring
them to seaside sanctuaries in the near future.
Seaside Sanctuaries
Sea pen facilities housing captive cetaceans
for tourism purposes exist globally.29 These facili-
ties are typically sited and designed to maximize
tourism accessibility and are often similar in size to
concrete-tank facilities (personal observation). Sea-
side sanctuaries would apply engineering principles
pioneered in these tourism facilities and elements
related to animal care and public outreach (e.g.,
veterinary and employee support facilities, visitor
and education centers) would be similar, but they
would eliminate the need to consider tourism expe-
rience when determining location and husbandry
practices. They would also not breed the animals,
to avoid producing more animals needing captive
care. Seaside sanctuaries would be sited where con-
ditions are suitable for the species to be held, would
ruled would not affect this decision. The Canadian
Parliament in Ottawa is considering bill S-203,
which would prohibit the display of cetaceans.24
Mexico is also considering legislation that would
limit reproduction of cetaceans; the country already
prohibits import, export, and capture from the wild
(“Mexico’s Lower House,” 2017). Mexico City has
declared itself to be dolphinarium-free (meaning
the one dolphin facility within the city limits will
close) (“Mexico City Is First,” 2017), as has the
city of Barcelona, which will close its zoo’s dol-
phin exhibit by 2019 (“Barcelona Trasladará Los
Delfines,” 2016).
Satire
Keeping orcas in captivity eventually became
the target of satirists, another manifestation of the
Blackfish Effect. SeaWorld had already faced con-
siderable lampooning from, for example, The Onion
(2013a, 2013b), the popular comedy/satire maga-
zine. However, after Blackfish’s debut on CNN,
this escalated (The Onion, 2015a, 2015b, 2015c,
2015d, 2017). Political comedian Stephen Colbert
also joked about SeaWorld on his eponymous show
The Colbert Report, and the controversy was also
featured on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. The
lampooning did not abate, and more recent exam-
ples include The Daily Show with Trevor Noah25
and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver.26 When
a company or practice becomes a widespread, per-
sistent object of ridicule in popular culture, par-
ticularly through online dissemination, its image
becomes shaped by it, compounding financial and
other impacts (Veil, Petrun, & Roberts, 2012).
SeaWorld’s Ultimate Response to Blackfish
SeaWorld’s new policy of no orca breeding (Sea-
World, 2017a) was company-wide and affected the
20-plus whales in its three US parks. SeaWorld also
pledged that it would change the orca shows and
facilities to provide “more natural looking habitats,
and with a focus on the whales’ natural behaviors”
and “with an added emphasis on education and
conservation” (SeaWorld, 2017a). Moreover, Sea-
World announced that it would be dedicating $50
million in funding to marine conservation proj-
ects (SeaWorld, 2017b) and $1.5 million to in situ
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THE BLACKFISH EFFECT 79
general public no longer views keeping cetaceans
in captivity for tourism purposes as acceptable35
(Naylor & Parsons, 2018).
Biographical Notes
Chris Parsons has been involved in whale and dolphin
research for over two decades and has been involved in proj-
ects on every continent. Dr. Parsons has been an Associate
Professor at George Mason University and was the Director
and developer of their undergraduate program in environ-
mental science. He is a member of the Scientific Committee
of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), has been
involved in organizing four of the International Marine Con-
servation Congresses (IMCC) (the world’s largest academic
marine conservation conference), and two of the Interna-
tional Congresses for Conservation Biology. He was a Gov-
ernor of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) for
nearly a decade and also served two terms as the president
of the SCB Marine Section. He was also on the Board of
Directors of the American Cetacean Society and is currently
on the Boards of the Society for Marine Mammalogy and the
SCB Conservation Marketing Working Group. In addition,
Dr. Parsons has published over 150 scientific articles and
book chapters and has written a textbook on marine mam-
mal biology and conservation and coedited a book on marine
wildlife conflict resolution.
Naomi Rose is the marine mammal scientist for the Animal
Welfare Institute in Washington, DC. She works addressing
problems associated with cetacean capture, trade, and cap-
tivity, both in the US and abroad. She has been a member
of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) Scientific
Committee since 2000, where she participates in the sub-
committees on environmental concerns and whale watching.
She has authored or coauthored over 35 scientific articles
and authored numerous articles for animal protection publi-
cations, as well as chapters in several books. She guest lec-
tures for three universities and speaks at and participates in
various conferences, workshops, meetings, and task forces
at the international, national, and state level. She has testi-
fied before the US Congress four times and at several state
legislative and federal regulatory hearings. She received a
Ph.D. in biology from the University of California at Santa
Cruz in 1992, where her dissertation examined the social
dynamics of wild orcas. She has worked in the marine mam-
mal advocacy field for over 25 years.
Notes
1Tilikum died on 6 January 2017, almost 7 years after
killing Dawn Brancheau (Pedicini, 2017). He was approxi-
mately 36 years of age.
2In contrast, there have been no substantiated reports of
free-ranging orcas ever killing a human being (see e.g., Hoyt,
1984). This, as well as the infrequency of reported human
injuries inflicted by free-ranging orcas (see footnote 4),
have limited public access, and would have a far
larger surface area and be far deeper (thus, be far
larger in volume) than any existing sea pen facility,
given that visibility of the animals to tourists is not
a priority. The goal of a wildlife sanctuary (for any
species, marine or terrestrial) is to provide the resi-
dent animals with conditions as close to natural as
possible.30 No seaside sanctuaries currently exist,
but several are in development.31
For many captive wildlife species rescued from
circumstances deemed unsuitable by authorities
or experts (e.g., circus animals, wildlife in trade),
being released into the wild is not an option, due
to captive birth, long tenure in captivity, permanent
disability, or removal from the wild at an early age
before independence (see e.g., Kolter & van Dijk,
2005). As a common alternative to euthanasia,
wildlife sanctuaries have been established for such
unreleasable individuals of several terrestrial spe-
cies (e.g., Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, 2015).
Many—and indeed, most—captive cetaceans are
equally unsuitable for release, making their place-
ment in sanctuaries a logical alternative but cur-
rently impossible due to the lack of such facilities.
When seaside sanctuaries become operational, the
residents would still be in captivity, but their condi-
tions would be closer to natural than in presently
existing tourism facilities.
A Paradigm Shift?
A societal paradigm shift appears to be happen-
ing with regard to captive cetaceans. In June 2016,
the National Aquarium in Baltimore announced
that it would close its dolphin exhibit and build a sea-
side sanctuary (potentially in Florida or the Carib-
bean), where it would “retire” its eight dolphins by
202032 (Racanelli, 2016). In May 2016, Munchkin
Inc. (a baby product company) announced a pub-
lic interest campaign promoting the end of captive
orca display, with the CEO pledging $1 million to
a retirement “sanctuary” for captive orcas.33 Global
tourism companies such as Virgin Holidays and
TripAdvisor have decided to alter or restrict their
partnerships with captive cetacean suppliers.34
For decades, the public display of cetaceans
has been accepted as a tool for education, con-
servation, and research, but the Blackfish Effect
has turned the tide: A growing proportion of the
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80 PARSONS AND ROSE
14See, for example, Jones v. Gordon, 792 F.2d 821 (9th
Cir. 1986) (enjoining SeaWorld from collecting killer whales
under a permit that had been issued without the preparation
of an environmental impact statement); Animal Protection
Institute of America v. Mosbacher, 799 F. Supp. 173 (D.D.C.
1992) (upholding the issuance of import permits to Shedd
Aquarium for cetaceans from Japan and Canada).
15Georgia Aquarium, Inc. v. Pritzker, 135 F. Supp. 3d 1280
(D.C., ND Georgia 2015).
16One of the authors (Rose) was materially involved in
several of these legislative and regulatory initiatives in her
capacity as an employee of a nonprofit animal charity. She
did not initiate any of them, but was directly consulted by
legislators and regulators, assisted in drafting language, and
testified at hearings.
17The original language of AB 2140 can be found at http://
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_
id=201320140AB2140
18The final language of the bill that the governor of Cali-
fornia signed can be found at http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/
faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB1453
19For the text of the bill, see https://www.nysenate.gov/
legislation/bills/2013/s6613/amendment/original
20See http://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?billNumber=
5666&Year=2015
21The bill, subsequently restricted only to orcas, was rein-
troduced in 2018 as Senate Bill 6099, http://app.leg.wa.gov/
billsummary?BillNumber=6099&Year=2017, and passed
out of committee in February.
22For the text of the bill, see https://www.congress.gov/
bill/114th-congress/housebill/4019/text
23See https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-
bill/1584
24See https://openparliament.ca/bills/42-1/S-203/
25See http://www.cc.com/video-clips/ebp0j3/the-daily-
show- with-trevor-noah-it-s-timeto-free-jeb-bush
26See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tloss7UKUaw
&feature=youtu.be and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
XEVlyP4_11M&feature=youtu.be&t=6m39s
27See http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/health/report.htm
28See https://sea worldcares.com/2016/03/Why-Sea-Cages-
Are-Dangerous/
29See, e.g., http://www.ammpa.org/ourmembers.html
30See, e.g., http://www.whalesanctuaryproject.org
31See https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/docu
ments/ML-Rose-Seaside-Sanctuaries-DFE.pdf
32Now seven dolphins, as one dolphin has subsequently
died; see http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2017/02/28/nani-
national-aquariums-eldest-dolphin-dies-at-44/
33See http://www.whalesanctuaryproject.org
34See https://www.virginholidays.co.uk/cetaceans and http://
ir.tripadvisor.com/news-releases/news-release-details/trip
advisor-announcescommitment-improve-wildlife-welfare
35See, for example, poll results at https://awionline.org/sites/
default/files/press-release/ML-AWI-WDC-OrcaPoll-2014.
pdf (orcas); https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/press-
release/AWI-ML-Lake-Research-Public-Memo-Dolphinaris-
Scottsdale-103116.pdf (dolphin swim-with attractions).
may be due to the general lack of close contact between
human swimmers and free-ranging orcas (with some excep-
tions, such as in Norway, where tourists, to date without
injurious incident, swim with free-ranging orcas—see
http://www.whaleswim.com/swim-with-orca-whales-in-
norway/), compared to the routine close contact (particu-
larly in water, known as “waterwork”) between trainers
and their captive charges prior to Dawn Brancheau’s death.
However, the hypothesis that orcas are influenced to behave
differently in captivity cannot be dismissed (see e.g., Jett,
Visser, Ventre, Waltz, & Loch, 2017, which describes ste-
reotypies in captive orcas that result in commonly observed
injury to the animals’ teeth, injury not routinely observed
in the wild).
3A nonexhaustive list of examples of such behaviors
include lunging out of the water at trainers standing on the
deck; mouthing (no actual contact or injury from teeth) or
raking (dragging teeth across skin, causing minor to serious
bleeding) trainer extremities; bumping into trainers in the
water with various body parts (lightly to powerfully enough
to break bones); and indeed any behavior not directed by the
trainer that required the trainer, on deck or in the water, to
move quickly in an attempt (successful or unsuccessful) to
avoid contact.
4There have been less than a handful of reports of minor
human injuries in the wild (Associated Press, 1996, 2005).
5SeaWorld of Florida, LLC, 24 BNA OSHC 1303 (No.
12–1375, 2012) (ALJ)
6SeaWorld of Florida, LLC v. Perez, 748 F.3d 1202 (D.C.
Cir. 2014)
7See http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/01/debate-over-
killer-whales-in-seaworld/ for Anderson Cooper and http://
www.cc.com/video-clips/lx3hyu/the-daily-show-with-jon-
stewart-exclusive---john-hargrove-extended-interview for the
Daily Show.
8For transcripts of the debate, see http://transcripts.cnn.
com/TRANSCRIPTS/1310/24/cfr.01.html and for clips, see
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MbgLBoPGjA
9See http://da15bdaf715461308003-0c725c907c2d63706
8751776aeee5fbf.r7.cf1.rackcdn.com/adf36e5c35b842f5ae
4e2322841e8933_4-4-14-updated-final-of-blacklist-list-of-
inaccuracies-and-misleading-points.pdf
10See http://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/protected_
species/marine_mammals/killer_whale/esa_status.html and
http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/profiles-profils/
killerWhaleNorth-PAC-NE-epaulardnord-eng.html
11See Anderson v. SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment,
Inc., No. 15-cv-02172-JSW, 2016 WL 4076097, n. 1 (N.D.
Cal. Aug. 1, 2016), which states “[t]he other three cases were
consolidated and were pending in the United States District
Court for the Southern District of California as Hall v. Sea-
World Entertainment, Inc., No. 3:15-CV-660-CAB-RBB
(the ‘Hall litigation’).” The Hall case was dismissed in May
2016; an appeal was filed and is pending.
12Baker v. SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc., No. 3:14-cv-
02129-MMA-AGS (S.D. Cal., filed Sept. 9, 2014).
13See http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/permits/georgia_aqua
rium_belugas.htm
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THE BLACKFISH EFFECT 81
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