#orca captivity
Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of California
Date of Capture: Born February 14, 2013
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of California
On February 14, 2013, the Icelandic female Kasatka gave birth to her fourth calf at SeaWorld San Diego; a male named Makani sired by the Argentinian male Kshamenk via Artificial Insemination.
Makani’s older sister, Kalia, was there to assist with his birth. He turned out to be a rather playful and energetic calf, copying the other whales during shows.
By five months of age, he already began playing on the slide out, a common behavior displayed by him. There are numerous videos that have been uploaded to YouTube of Makani purposefully beaching himself on the slideout and often just lying still.
In December 2014, Kalia gave birth to her first calf named Amaya. Makani and Amaya seem to get along well and Makani can often be seen with Kalia and Amaya.
Today, Makani is 2 years old and still lives with his mother at SeaWorld of California.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Port of Nagoya Aquarium, Japan
Date of Capture: Born November 13, 2012
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Port of Nagoya Aquarium, Japan
On November 13, 2012, the Icelandic female Stella gave birth to her fifth calf at the Port of Nagoya Aquarium; a female named Rin, sired by the Icelandic male Bingo.
Stella, Bingo, and one of their daughters, Ran II, were all moved to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium in December 2011 following the devastating 2011 Tsunami. At the time of their move, Stella was already 7 months pregnant with Rin.
Unfortunately, Bingo died in August 2014, leaving behind Stella and 2 of her daughters - Ran II and Rin.
Today, Rin is 2 years old and remains at the Port of Nagoya Aquarium with her mother and sister. It is unclear if there are any future plans to breed them, as the only way would be through Artificial Insemination of the transfer of an unrelated breeding male to the Aquarium.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Reyneke Island, Russia
Date of Capture: August 2012
Age at Capture: Approx. 5 years
Current Location: Moscow Dolphinarium & Aquarium, Russia
Sometime in August of 2012, two Orca were captured in the Sea of Okhotsk in Russia. While one of the whales was taken captive, the other’s fate is unknown; whether it died, was released, or even escaped. The Orca taken captive was soon named Narnia and was kept at the Adaptation Center in Livadia near Nakhodka.
Narnia was kept alone until September 2013 when three more Orca were captured and transferred to the Center. The three new whales were reportedly in very poor condition and refused to eat no matter what staff tried. Eventually, Narnia apparently offered them her fish, and was able to coax them into eating.
On December 2, 2013, it was reported that Narnia and a young male were transported to Moscow to a temporary holding tank because they were in poor condition from the cold temperatures in their sea pens; likely from not having enough space to move and warm themselves up.
Eventually the young males name was revealed to be Nord and in December 2014, they were moved into the new aquarium with a young female named Malyshka (or Juliet) who was captured in July 2014.
Since their final move, very few photos have been released. However, the Oceanarium held a show on July 17, 2015. Some photos and video were posted to Instagram, but mostly to a private account. It is unclear what the show was for, but may have been held for the owners, the mayor of the city, to get shots for advertisements, or to see if the whales can handle a public setting.
Today, Narnia is approximately 8 years old and remains at the Oceanarium with Nord and Juliet.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Kamogawa Sea World, Japan
Date at Capture: Born July 19, 2012
Age of Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Kamogawa Sea World, Japan
On July 19, 2012, the captive born female Lovey gave birth to her second calf at Kamogawa Sea World; a female named Luna sired by the Icelandic male Oscar.
Lovey is a good mother to Luna, and the pair are often spotted swimming together. Luna sometimes spends time with her aunt Lara as well.
After Luna’s birth, Lovey began raking and acting unusually aggressive towards her son, Earth, who was born in 2008. This resulted in Earth having to be moved into the back pool with Oscar, who was also his father. The pair spent the majority of their time together until Oscar’s death 5 months after Luna’s birth.
In December 2015, Earth was moved to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium, in exchange for Ran II’s Move to Kamogawa Sea World. This move was apparently done in an effort to “stabilize breeding” between the facilities.
Today, Luna is 3 years old and still resides at Kamogawa Sea World with her mother and two aunts.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Marineland Antibes, France
Date of Capture: Born March 16, 2011
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Marineland Antibes, France
On March 16, 2011, captive-born female Wikie gave birth to her first calf at Marineland Antibes. Originally thought to be female, the calf was named Moana. However, it was soon discovered that Moana was male, but his name simply stuck.
Moana’s father is the Icelandic male Ulises via Artificial Insemination, making Moana the third successful calf born through A.I.
Before he even turned 1, Moana was already learning and mastering complex behaviors thanks to his close observation of his older tank mates. While Moana has been introduced to all of his tank mates, he prefers to stay close to his mother, Wikie.
Today, Moana is 4 years old and still resides at Marineland Antibes in France.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Loro Parque, Spain
Date of Capture: Born October 13, 2010
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Loro Parque, Spain
On October 13, 2010, the captive-born female Kohana gave birth to her first calf at Loro Parque in Spain; a male named Adán sired by the captive-born male Keto.
Unfortunately, due to her being separated from her own mother at such a young age, Kohana never learned how to properly care for a calf and rejected Adán immediately. This resulted in staff having to hand-rear Adán, despite the abysmal failure of hand-reared captive calves in the past.
In addition to his mother rejecting him, Keto is not only Adán’s father, but he is also Kohana’s uncle; meaning that Adán is inbred and making him the second inbred calf in captivity.
As he’s grown, Adán seems to be progressing well, but due to the instability of Loro Parque’s social structure, he has sometimes been raked and displaced by the older whales. Kohana can be placed with Adán but does not play a maternal role to him. Adán was the first whale to be introduced to Morgan when she arrived in 2011 and the two seem to get along well; eventually, Adán was introduced to all of the other whales as well.
In August 2012, Kohana gave birth to her second calf by Keto; this time a female named Victoria, or Vicky for short. Once again, Kohana rejected her calf immediately and Vicky had to be hand-reared like her older brother. Adán and Vicky spent some time together and got along well. Unfortunately, Vicky died in June 2013 just 2 months shy of her first birthday.
Many people have also expressed concern over Adán and his health, as pictures taken at the park show he often looks sickly and has poor body condition.
Today, Adán is 4 years old and remains at Loro Parque where he participates in shows but otherwise spends most of his time with Tekoa and Morgan.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Florida
Date of Capture: Born October 9, 2010
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of Florida
On October 9, 2010, the Icelandic female Katina gave birth to her seventh calf at SeaWorld Orlando; a male named Makaio sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum.
As Makaio was born in 2010 after the death of both Kalina and Sumar, as well as senior trainer Dawn Brancheau, his name was chosen because it means “gift of god” in Hawaiian.
He is very close with his mother, and has become more interactive with guests as he has grown. Makaio often spends time with his [older] nephew Trua, and older half-sisters Nalani and Malia, and has also begun training for shows.
There have been concerns over the state of Makaio’s teeth due to his young age, because it appears he has already begun wearing down his teeth enough to expose the pulp. He also came close to becoming stuck in a closing gate on December 13, 2014 during a show.
While he escaped incident that day, there was an Icelandic bull named Kotar who was killed in 1995 after a gate came down on his melon, crushing his skull; which has since caused many people to continually express concern over “gate play” with the whales.
Today, Makaio is 4 years old and still remains at the Orlando park with his mother and other family members.
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Gender:Female
Pod: Norwegian P pod (?)
Place of Capture: Wadden Sea, Netherlands
Date of Capture: June 23, 2010
Age at Capture: Approx. 3 years
Current Location: Loro Parque Tenerife, Spain
On June 23, 2010, a fisherman spotted a very ill young Orca swimming in the Wadden Sea off the coast of the Netherlands. A team from the Dolphinarium Harderwijk rescued her and brought her to their facility where they administered emergency medical treatment for extreme starvation as well as dehydration, and she was named Morgan.
The permit they were granted for her rescue also detailed that she was to be released as soon as possible. However, the Dolphinarium claimed that Morgan’s family could not be located, and so release would be impossible.
Many organizations, including the Free Morgan Foundation, continued advocating for her release and in 2011, released a report showing that 77.7% of Morgans call types were matched to Norwegian P pod, meaning that a release was, indeed, a possiblity.
However, due to the small size of the tank at Dolphinarium Harderwijk, they began searching for a new facility for her to stay at; though her stay at the Dolphinarium was extended a whole year due to lengthy court battles. Eventually, the court ruled that Morgan was to be moved to a new facility, resulting in her move to Loro Parque in Spain.
Upon her arrival, Morgan was introduced to Adán and Skyla. Eventually, she was introduced to the oldest female, Kohana, and the parks older males, Tekoa and Keto. In 2012, Loro Parque announced that Morgan is partially deaf and “barely responds” to whistle cues; but can be seen in YouTube videos performing behaviors, and often responding to whistle cues immediately.
While activists continued the legal fight to try and release Morgan, New Zealand Orca researcher, Dr. Ingrid Visser, visited Loro Parque in June 2012 and documented multiple instances of aggression directed mainly towards Morgan. Visser photographed Morgan self-mutilating by banging her head against tank walls and chewing on the concrete. Photographs from Visser also show Morgan being attacked relentlessly by Kohana and Skyla. Morgan has also sometimes been locked in a tank alone with Keto, who is extremely sexually aggressive toward Morgan and will consistently chase her around the tank in an attempt to penetrate her.
Unfortunately, on April 23, 2014, after yet another lengthy court battle, the Council of State ruled that Morgan’s transfer to Loro Parque was legal. They also ruled that since her family had not been located and Morgan was very young, it was unclear if Morgan could survive if she were to be released. For the time being, Morgan is to remain at Loro Parque while activists attempt to come up with a new plan for her.
Today, Morgan is approximately 8 years old and remains at Loro Parque where she progresses in her training every day and has even begun performing in shows.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Texas
Date of Capture: Born January 7, 2010
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of Texas
On January 7, 2010, the captive-born female Takara gave birth to her third calf at SeaWorld San Antonio; a female named Sakari sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum.
Soon after her birth, Sakari was able to meet her half-sister Unna, as well as her uncle Keet and appears to be growing and learning well.
According to former trainer John Hargrove, Sakari, despite being so young, displayed very self-destructive stereotypical behaviors. Sakari, like some other whales, would engage in “head-banging”, in which an animal would repeatedly bang it’s head against the concrete floor or wall.
“She would go down and hit her head on the bottom of the pool, over and over to the point where her jaw would be bloody and bruised.” Hargrove stated. He went on to say that the damage to Sakari’s jaw was so bad at one point that she stopped eating, because it was too painful for her to open her mouth.
Today, Sakari is 5 years old and remained at the Texas park with her half-siblings and mother.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Kamogawa Sea World, Japan
Date of Capture: Born October 13, 2008
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Port of Nagoya Aquarium, Japan
On October 13, 2008, the captive-born female Lovey gave birth to her first calf at Kamogawa Sea World; a male named Earth sired by the Icelandic male Oscar.
With the addition of Earth, Kamogawa was rather crowded, so his grandparents, Stella and Bingo, were moved to the back pool. Lovey took great care of Earth, and soon enough he was introduced to his aunt Lara and father Oscar.
In December of 2011, Stella, Bingo, and Earth’s aunt Ran II, were moved to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium, leaving the other four whales behind at Kamogawa.
Earth spent a lot of time with his mother until July of 2012 when his little sister, Luna, was born. Lovey became unusually aggressive towards Earth and would rake him on occasion. This resulted in staff having to separate the pair for Earth’s safety. He would join Oscar in the back pools, spending a great deal of time with him until Oscars death in December 2012.
In December 2015, Earth was moved to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium in exchange for his aunt, Ran II, who was moved to Kamogawa Sea World. This move was done in an effort to “stabilize breeding” between the facilities.
Today, Earth is 7 years old and now resides with his grandmother, Stella, and his aunt, Rin.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld Florida
Date of Capture: Born on March 12, 2007
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld Florida
On March 12, 2007, the captive-born female Taima gave birth to her fourth calf, her first daughter; a female named Malia sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum.
Much like her previous two calves, Taima began acting unusually aggressive towards Malia and soon enough, the pair were introduced to Tilikum who got along well with his daughter. However, in the summer of 2008, Malia and Taima had to be temporarily separated until they were reunited and kept with the captive-born female Kalina.
Unfortunately, in June of 2010, Taima died during the labor of her fifth calf - eerily similar to the death of her mother Gudrun. With the sudden loss of her mother, Malia was left alone but soon grew close to Trua and her [older] niece Nalani, who were close to her in age. Malia was also looked after by Kalina until her death in October 2010.
Based on SeaWorld’s history, many people have been speculating if Malia could be impregnated soon, as captive Orca seem to be impregnated at much younger ages than their wild counterparts. Just recently, one of SeaWorld’s captive-bred females, Kalia, gave birth to her first calf at just 9 years old.
Today, Malia is 8 years old and still resides at SeaWorld Orlando.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Florida
Date of Capture: Born on September 18, 2006
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of Florida
On September 18, 2006, the Icelandic female Katina gave birth to her sixth calf at SeaWorld Orlando; a female named Nalani and sired by the captive-born male Taku. However, Taku was also Nalani’s brother, as he was the son of Katina and Tilikum. This mother-son pairing made Nalani the first inbred calf in captivity.
When Nalani was just 9 days old, she began having trouble, however. Katina began showing less interest in her new calf, and more interest in her sons, Taku and Ikaika. The brothers also showed some level of aggression towards Nalani, though Ikaika’s aggression was often of a sexual nature as he had been observed trying to mate with the newborn Nalani on various occasions.
As a result, Katina, Taku, and Ikaika were placed on the drug Diazepam (Valium), a drug often used to decrease stress and cause light sedation. This caused outrage among some, as SeaWorld had given the drug to Katina already, though the drug is not meant for use on pregnant or nursing females, as it can cause birth and neonatal defects.
Eventually, Taku and Ikaika were both moved to different parks, which caused Katina to return her focus on Nalani and resume normal behavior observed from her in the past with her calves.
As she has grown, Nalani seems to be in good health and shows no adverse signs that are sometimes seen with inbred animals. She had learned and performed just as well as all the other whales, and often spends time with her younger brother Makaio, and her [younger] aunt Malia.
Today, Nalani is 8 years old and still resides at the Orlando park with her mother. Based on SeaWorld’s track record, many people have been questioning whether SeaWorld ever plans to breed Nalani.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Kamogawa Sea World, Japan
Date of Capture: Born on February 25, 2006
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Kamogawa Sea World, Japan
On February 25, 2006, the Icelandic female Stella gave birth to her fourth calf at Kamogawa Sea World in Japan; a female named Ran II sired by the Icelandic male Bingo.
Ran II grew up under the watchful eye of her mother, but was also looked after by her older sisters, Lovey and Lara. Unfortunately, her other sister, Sarah, died in April of that year.
In 2008, when Lovey gave birth to a calf of her own, Stella, Bingo, and Ran II were moved to the back tank. Soon enough, plans were made to transfer the three to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium. The move was delayed until December, however, due to the 2011 tsunami that hit Japan.
In 2011, it was also announced that Lovey and Stella were both pregnant again; which is reportedly what prompted the move. Ran II was moved first to the aquarium and spent some time alone before her parents arrived the next day.
In late 2012, Stella gave birth to her fifth calf, yet another female, later known as Rin. Unfortunately, in August of 2014, Bingo became sick and died on August 2, leaving behind all three females and no breeding males.
In December of 2015, Ran II was moved back to Kamogawa Sea World in exchange for her nephew, Earth, who was moved to the Port of Nagoya Aquarium. This move was done in an effort to “stabilize breeding” between the facilities.
Today, Ran II is 9 years old and now resides at Kamogawa Sea World with her sisters, Lovey and Lara, as well as her niece, Luna.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Florida
Date of Capture: Born November 23, 2005
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of Florida
On November 23, 2005, the captive born female Takara gave birth to her second calf at SeaWorld Orlando, a male named Trua sired by the captive born male Taku. Just like his mother Trua was very interested in the underwater viewing windows.
Trua also befriended many of the other whales including his aunt Malia and uncle Makaio, who both happen to be younger than him. In 2008, Trua and his mother were moved in with the Icelandic male, Tilikum; Trua’s grandsire.
In February of 2009, after becoming pregnant by Tilikum with her third calf, Takara was moved to the Texas park which left Trua alone at the Orlando park. After his mother was moved, Trua was mostly kept with Tilikum and the two began performing together. As most of the other whales at the park were aggressive towards Tilikum, Trua became his only companion as the two got along well.
Recently, photos surfaced from visitors showing Trua in the underwater viewing area with the other whales; raising questions about whether Tilikum was alone or not. Not long afterwards, a photo was released by SeaWorld showing Tilikum alongside the Icelandic female, Katina, and their son, Makaio.
Today, Trua is 9 years old and still remains at the Orlando park.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of California
Date of Capture: Born December 21, 2004
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of California
On December 21, 2004, the Icelandic female Kasatka gave birth to her third calf at SeaWorld San Diego; a female named Kalia sired by the captive bred male Keet. Though, Kalia is also sometimes known as “Great Grandbaby Shamu”, as Keet is the son of the first successfully bred Orca in captivity - Kalina who was also known as the “Original Baby Shamu”.
Being the daughter of the dominant female at the San Diego park, Kalia also seems to be rather dominant herself as she would often displace some of the other whales. However, after her younger brother Makani was born, Kalia seemed to calm down slightly, becoming a mother figure to Makani and helping to care for him.
One of Kalia’s favorite activities seems to be hunting the birds that often linger around the poolside, searching for scraps of fish.
However, Kalia has been shown to display rather troubling behavior sometimes. A video posted to YouTube by a park guest showed Kalia apparently “throwing a fit” - repeatedly thrashing herself upon the concrete slide out. Near the end, she begins thrashing so violently that she is forced to go back into the water. The original video has been taken down, so the upload date is unknown; though there have been others who have reposted the video on their own accounts.
Sometime in 2013, Kalia was artificially inseminated when she was just 8 years old. On December 2, 2014, she gave birth to her first calf; a female later named Amaya who’s sire is reported to be the Icelandic male Ulises, but has yet to be confirmed. At first, concerns arose over her interest in her calf, as Kasatka was originally seen looking after Amaya - though Kalia was later videoed and photographed nursing and swimming alongside Amaya.
In September 2014, nearing the end of Kalia’s pregnancy, she was videoed by a park regular apparently becoming stuck in a closing gate. SeaWorld responded to the backlash with a statement saying that Kalia often plays with the gates and nudges them open on her own.
Though it was a different type of gate, the Icelandic male Kotar, who was Kalia’s grandsire, also knew how to open the gates when he lived at the Texas park. This resulted in Kotar’s death on April 1, 1995 when a gate came down on him, crushing his skull and effectively killing him.
Today, Kalia is 10 years old and still resides at the San Diego park with her daughter, Amaya.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Florida
Date of Capture: Born February 9, 2004
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Loro Parque Tenerife, Spain
On February 9, 2004, the captive born female Kalina gave birth to her fifth calf at SeaWorld Orlando; a female named Skyla sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum. While Skyla was close with her mother, she also became very close with her half-siblings Ikaika and Kohana.
However, in February of 2006, when Skyla was just 2 years old, she was moved with Kohana, Keto, and Tekoa to Loro Parque in Spain. Because they were all very young at the time, none of them ever learned how a pod’s social structure works; nor did Kohana or Skyla learn proper mothering skills. Due to the lack of stability at the park, there have been countless aggressive incidents between the whales at the park.
In the spring of 2009, Skyla began pushing a trainer around the pool and up against the wall during a show. As a result, limitations on waterwork and a mandate that only senior trainers work with her was put in place. Since this incident, no other altercations between Skyla and her trainers have been reported.
Today, Skyla is 11 years old and remains at Loro Parque, performing shows daily with the other whales.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of Florida
Date of Capture: Born August 25, 2002
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of California
On August 25, 2002, Icelandic female Katina gave birth to her fifth calf at SeaWorld Orlando; a male known as Ikaika, sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum. When Ikaika was born, he became very quick friends with his older brother, Taku. He also became a favorite along park guests, as he was very interested in interacting in the underwater viewing area.
In September 2006, Katina gave birth to her sixth calf, a female named Nalani. However, Katina had mated with her son, Taku, which produced Nalani. About 9 days after her birth, Katina began showing less interest in her new calf and seemed to focus her interest on her sons, Taku and Ikaika. All three whales appeared to show some levels of aggression towards Nalani.
In Ikaika’s case, his aggression was often of a sexual nature in which he would attempt to mate with newborn Nalani. SeaWorld decided it best to place them on Valium in order to calm them down, as well as separate Taku and Ikaika from their mother. However, Nalani was less that 2 weeks old, and Valium is not recommended for pregnant or nursing females, as it can cause birth defects and interfere with the development of a nursing neonate. It was only after both Taku and Ikaika were moved to separate parks that Katina began properly caring for Nalani as she had with her other calves.
While Taku was sent to the Texas park, Ikaika was sent to Marineland Ontario in Canada on a “breeding loan” in November 2006, despite his being only 4 years old at the time. Male Orca are known to reach sexual maturity somewhere around 15 years old. When he arrived, he met three female Orca - Kiska, Nootka V, and Kiska’s calf Athena.
Unfortunately, Nootka V died in 2008 and Athena followed in 2009, leaving just Kiska and Ikaika at the park. Kiska reportedly became depressed after the death of her tankmate and calf, though Ikaika was still young and playful, bothering Kiska in an attempt to engage her in play, but Kiska was not interested. While he was with her, Ikaika was known to bite/rake Kiska, and so the pair had to be separated until Kiska recovered.
However, in November 2011, SeaWorld expressed concern over the quality of care Ikaika was receiving at Marineland, and requested that he be sent back to their park. When Marineland refused, SeaWorld took them to court in an attempt to regain custody; claiming that Marineland was not meeting their veterinary care, husbandry care, or training obligations while Ikaika was in their facility. SeaWorld won the case and Ikaika was returned to their care and transferred to the San Diego park that same month. Upon his arrival at the park, Ikaika was raked and attacked at first, but eventually befriended Corky II, Ulises, and Orkid.
Today, Ikaika is 12 years old and remains at the San Diego park where he performs daily.
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of California
Date of Capture: Born on May 3, 2002
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Loro Parque Tenerife, Spain
On May 3, 2002, captive born female Takara gave birth to her first calf at SeaWorld San Diego, a female named Kohana sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum via Artificial Insemination. Kohana would become the second captive Orca ever to be born through AI.
Takara and Kohana became inseparable. At first Kohana was shy, compared to her mother who would often spend time interacting with guests through the underwater viewing, but became more open and playful around the time she was a year old. In 2004, when Kohana was 2 years old, she and Takara were both moved to the Orlando park where Kohana met some of her half-siblings.
However, in February 2006 when Kohana was just 3 years old, she was moved to Loro Parque in Spain with three other closely-related young whales known as Skyla, Keto, and Tekoa. Being the oldest female at the park, Kohana often shows dominance over the others, but with a lack of an experienced matriarch, the social structure at Loro Parque is unstable and often results in aggression between the whales.
In October 2010, Kohana gave birth to her first calf at just 8 years old, a male named Adán sired by Keto, who is also Kohana’s uncle. Unfortunately, due to being separated from her mother at such a young age, Kohana never learned necessary maternal skills and rejected Adán immediately, paying no mind to her new calf. This resulted in staff having to bottle-feed Adán, despite the abysmal failure of hand-raised captive calves in the past. Soon enough, Adán was introduced to the other whales and reintroduced to his mother. They all get along, but Kohana plays no maternal role to him.
In August 2012, Kohana gave birth to her second calf, a female named Victoria - Vicky for short - also sired by her uncle Keto. Once again, Kohana rejected Vicky immediately, and reportedly became aggressive towards her, forcing staff to separate the pair and hand-raise Vicky as well. For a short while, Vicky was reportedly doing well, but took a turn for the worse and died in June 2013 at just 11 months old.
Today, Kohana is 13 years old and still resides at Loro Parque, acting as the dominant female despite her inexperience.
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Gender:Male
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at SeaWorld of California
Date of Capture: Born on September 1, 2001
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: SeaWorld of California
On September 1, 2001, Icelandic female Kasatka gave birth to her second calf at SeaWorld San Diego, a male named Nakai sired by the Icelandic male Tilikum via Artificial Insemination. Nakai was the first calf successfully conceived and born through AI.
Though Kasatka was a good mother, Nakai was never afraid to stray from her side. He could often be seen interacting with park guests through the underwater viewing area, but does not seem to be as interested now that he is older.
On September 27, 2012, photos surfaced of Nakai with a “dinner-plate sized” chunk of flesh missing from his chin. The injury, which appeared to have exposed the lower jaw bone, was reportedly sustained sometime during a night show on September 20. SeaWorld contends that Nakai “came in contact with a portion of the pool” but did not give any other details, and have not spoken anymore on the matter since its occurrence.
In November of the same year, the USDA launched an investigation that concluded that Nakai’s injury appeared to have been caused by his jaw scraping the recessed track that holds watertight gates between two of the pools at Shamu Stadium, which they say was consistent with what SeaWorld park officials had told them.
Today, Nakai is 13 years old and his injury looks to have healed well.
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(NOTE: Last two links contain sensitive images of Nakai’s injury. Please proceed with caution.)
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Gender:Female
Pod:N/A
Place of Capture: Born at Marineland Antibes, France
Date of Capture: Born June 1, 2001
Age at Capture: Captive born
Current Location: Marineland Antibes, France
On June 1, 2001, the Icelandic female Sharkan gave birth to her third calf at Marineland Antibes in France; a female later known as Wikie and sired by the Icelandic male Kim II. Unfortunately, Sharkan died at the start of 2009.
Later on in 2009, Wikie became the youngest whale ever to be successfully Artificially Inseminated at the age of just 8 years old with semen from the Icelandic male Ulises, who currently resides at SeaWorld of California. Also in that same year, Wikie was involved in an incident where she pushed a trainer underwater, just before waterworks were stopped at the park.
In 2011, Wikie gave birth to her first calf. At first it was thought the calf was female and was named Moana, but it was later announced that Moana was a male but would keep his name. Moana was the first Orca born through AI in Europe, and the 3rd in the world.
Right after Moana, however, Wikie became pregnant again and gave birth in November 2013 to another male who was later known as Keijo. It is believed that his father is Valentin, who happens to be Wikie’s half brother as they share the same father.
In May 2014, a video was posted to YouTube showing Wikie, Moana, and Keijo at the slideout. In the video, Keijo is lying on the slideout while Wikie continuously blocks him from re-entering the water, as well as coming onto the slideout twice, pushing Keijo further back towards the railing. This is most likely a learned behavior on Wikie’s part, as there is photo evidence of Sharkan forcing Wikie onto the slideout as a calf. It’s unknown why Sharkan ever displayed this behavior in the first place, however, as no wild populations have ever been observed purposely beaching their own calves.
Today, Wikie is 13 years old and still resides at Marineland Antibes with her two sons.
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