Orcas in captivity exhibit severe welfare compromise including stereotypic behaviors, collapsed dorsal fins, shortened lifespans, and psychological distress arising from confinement in inadequate facilities.
The combination of vastly reduced space, disrupted social structures, artificial feeding, and the acoustic environment of tanks causes profound psychological and physical suffering in captive orcas. These animals, which in the wild range hundreds of miles daily in complex family groups, are uniquely unsuited to captive conditions.