Leave Orcas (Dolphins) Out of Your Circus Act

Orcas (Dolphins) Can and Do Kill

Killer whale (orca) kills trainer at SeaWorld amusement park in Orlando, Florida

A female trainer was killed by a 6.5 ton killer whale (orca) at SeaWorld’s Shamu Stadium in Orlando, Florida, police and local media reported.

Orcas perform at Shamu Stadium at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida. Credit: David Bjorgen.  Copyleft. Multi-license with GFDL and Creative Commons CC-BY-SA 2.5

The killer whale, who is called Tilikum, or “Tilly,” is actually an orca (Orcinus orca) aka blackfish, the largest member of the dolphin family. Orcas are wild, powerful animals who can and do kill, especially when they feel threatened.

Two mammal-eating “transient” killer whales photographed off the south side of Unimak Island, eastern Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Photo Credit: Robert Pittman/NOAA.

Dawn Brancheau, 40, an experienced “trainer” at the famous Florida tourist attraction, was killed by the killer whale Tilikum after she accidentally fell into the holding tank.

“She apparently slipped and fell into the tank and was fatally injured by one of the whales,” police spokesperson said. “Brancheau was pronounced dead at the park after being recovered from the pool. Orange County Sheriff’s Office homicide investigators continue to investigate the death of the trainer who was reported to have 16 years of experience working with killer whales.”

According to eye-witness reports, the orca at the park’s Shamu Stadium grabbed the woman by the waist, “thrashed her about and dragged her underwater,” minutes before a public performance was about to start.

“There were conflicting reports about how the incident occurred. The Orlando Sentinel quoted a spectator as saying the whale came up from the water and grabbed the trainer by her waist. The sheriff’s official said preliminary accounts indicated she slipped and fell in, but that was still under investigation.” Reuters reported .

“He was thrashing her around pretty good. It was violent,'” an eyewitness  said.

The whale “took off really fast in the tank, and then he came back, shot up in the air, grabbed the trainer by the waist and started thrashing around, and one of her shoes flew off,” she added.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, “Tilly” was blamed for drowning of one of his trainers at  Sealand of the Pacific in Victoria, British Columbia, in 1991 during a performance.

SeaWorld bought Tilly in 1992, and 7 years later he was reportedly involved in a second incident when the park authorities found the body of a naked man lying across his back.

They claimed the man was drowned after suffering hypothermia.

How the US Woman Emily May Harper Was Killed in NZ

Emily May Harper, 27, had a cardiac arrest while swimming with dolphins in Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand, October 20, 2009. Matthew Hawkins had proposed to Emily Harper. (Courtesy Matthew Hawkins )

In October 2009, a  27-year-old American woman was killed in New Zealand while swimming with [agitated] dolphins.

The New Zealand authorities, worried about losing substantial income from their “eco-tourism” industry, tried to cover-up the incident, claiming that the victim had died of natural causes. More …

Related Links:

• US Woman killed Swimming with Dolphins in NZ
• Another American Woman Killed in New Zealand
• Sick kiwis harm generous dolphin
• Tourist boats destroying dolphin community in New Zealand

Tilikum Bio
Tilikum, sometimes misspelled Tillikum, is a bull Orca who lives at SeaWorld Orlando. He was captured near Iceland in November 1983 at about two years of age. Tilikum measures 22 feet 6 inches long and weighs in at 12,300 pounds (as of 2007). His pectoral fins are six and one half feet long, his massive flukes curl under, and his 6-foot-tall dorsal fin is flopped completely to his left side, and weighs close to 200 pounds. He is the largest Orca in captivity and also the most successful sire in captivity, with 13 offspring, 10 of which are still alive. His name means friend in Chinook Jargon, usually spelled Tilicum and also meaning “people/tribe” or “kin”. [Wikipedia]