The captivity of cetaceans like killer whales and dolphins for entertainment has come under increasing ethical scrutiny as understanding of their complex needs has grown.
Cetacean captivity imposes welfare costs that stem from the profound mismatch between what these animals are and what tanks can provide. Orcas are long-ranging, socially complex animals that live in stable family groups and travel vast distances in the wild. Tanks, no matter how large, cannot accommodate these needs. Captive orcas show behavioral abnormalities including aggression, stereotypies, and collapsed dorsal fins that indicate severe stress. The tank environment creates acoustic pollution that distresses animals whose lives depend on sophisticated echolocation and communication. The natural behaviors of wild cetaceans simply cannot be expressed in captivity. The growing global movement away from captive cetacean entertainment reflects a reasonable ethical conclusion that the entertainment value does not justify the welfare cost.