Gender: MalePod: N/APlace of Capture: Samborombón Bay, ArgentinaDate of Capture: September 9,

Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Samborombón Bay, Argentina
Date of Capture: September 9, 1992
Age at Capture: Approx. 4 years
Current Location: Mundo Marino, Buenos Aires, Argentina

On September 9, 1992, two young male Orca were taken captive in Samborombón Bay, Argentina. It was reported that the two males stranded on their own, but it is widely believed that capture crews forced the males to strand.

The young male was named Kshamenk while the larger male was nicknamed “Father of Kshamenk” due to his size, but it is unknown if he was truly Kshamenk’s father. The two were transferred to Mundo Marino but “Father of Kshamenk” died the same day due to unknown causes.

Kshamenk managed to survive and was soon introduced to a female named Belén, caught in 1988. The two performed together daily and got along well. They mated once they reached sexual maturity, causing Belén to become pregnant with her first calf. However, in February 1998, she gave birth to a stillborn.

The following year, Belén became pregnant a second time by Kshamenk, but in February 2000, she died due to unknown causes. She had been in the fourth month of her pregnancy.

After Belén’s death, Kshamenk had only smaller species of dolphin for companionship, such as Floppy, a young female whom appeared to be his favorite; and whom he attempted to mate with on various occasions until her death in 2012.

Six Flags Marine World in Vallejo, California attempted to move Kshamenk to the U.S. to live with their lone female, Shouka, many times, but were denied. Legally, Mundo Marino does not own Kshamenk; he is held in trust by Mundo Marino for the people of Argentina, meaning that he is not their property, and cannot be sold. Argentine law also forbids the export of live native wildlife, which includes Orca. Ongoing attempts to rehabilitate/free Kshamenk have proven to be unsuccessful thus far.

In 2011, people from SeaWorld flew down to Mundo Marino to collect semen from Kshamenk for use in artificial insemination procedures on SeaWorld’s females.

Kasatka, a Icelandic female residing at SeaWorld of California, was AI’ed soon after and gave birth to Kshamenk’s first live calf, a male named Makani, in February 2013. In December 2013, Kasatka’s daughter, Takara, also gave birth to a calf sired by Kshamenk, a female named Kamea.

Today, Kshamenk remains at Mundo Marino and is approximately 27 years old.

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