News Room

Russian Orca Whale Dies One Month After Capture

Submitted by International Marine Mammal Project
October 30, 2003 For immediate release

The first ever Russian orca captive is dead after less than one month. The circumstances of the death remain unclear and the captive facility, Russia's Utrish Dolphinarium, has not responded to inquiries.

"It is entirely possible that the female orca died of shock or suffered internal injuries during transportation" said orca expert Dr. Paul Spong of Canada's OrcaLab. "The Russian method for transporting captive whales, as we've seen with belugas, appears to consist of dumping them on the floor of a cargo plane and taking off. There might not even be a layer of foam underneath the body. The huge weight of the whale puts immense pressure on internal organs, so it's not surprising that injuries and deaths occur."

The young orca whale, estimated at 6 years of age, was captured off the coast of Kamchatka in Russia's far eastern waters on September 26th. She was transported to a Black Sea facility operated by the Utrish Dolphinarium on October 5th. Her death is believed to have occurred on October 23rd.

"This death is a tragic waste of life" said Mark Berman, assistant director of San Francisco based Earth Island Institute's International Marine Mammal Project. "The Russians have now captured two orcas and they're both dead. This is an outrage. Orcas belong in the ocean with their families, not in captivity. Captivity kills."

Permits issued by the government of the Russian Federation allow for the capture of 10 orcas in Russia's far eastern waters this year. The permits expire tomorrow October 31.

For more information contact:
Mark Berman, Earth Island Institute (415)788-3666 ext. 146; email: berman@earthisland.org
Dr. Paul Spong (250)974-8068; email: orcalab@island.net, Web: www.orcalab.org, www.wdcs.org.
Dr. Lev Mukhametov, Utrish Dolphinarium tel.7-095-958-1260, email: utrish@online.ru.
For Television media: B roll is available from Mark Berman