Marineland, a theme park in Canada’s Niagara Falls, has been charged under the Criminal Code for allegedly using dolphins and whales for entertainment purposes without authorisation.
The Niagara Regional Police Service began an investigation in October into allegations that captive cetaceans were being used in shows at the amusement park in August, CBC News reports.
“The information [investigators] received substantiated the allegation that this did happen within the month of August,” said Mario Lagrotteria, the police service’s Niagara Falls district commander.
Miranda Desa, Canadian counsel for the US-based non-profit Last Chance for Animals, said the group filed a complaint on September 30, as well as a followup complaint in late October.
Captive cetaceans used in shows
Desa said a member of Last Chance for Animals recorded videos of dolphin and beluga whale shows at the attraction in August this year, before sending them to police.
Under a section of the Criminal Code that was introduced in 2019, captive cetaceans cannot be used “for performance for entertainment purposes” unless the show is authorised with a licence from Ontario.
“Our animal presentation contains marine mammals undertaking behaviours they exhibit in ocean environments,” Marineland said in a statement.
“These behaviours are combined with an educational script delivered by Marineland staff, providing a foundation in understanding of these important marine species.”
Last Chance for Animals complaint
Representatives for the park are set to appear in court in February 2022. “Marineland continues to be committed to our mission of research, education and conservation and will continue to provide world-class care for the animals who call Marineland home,” the statement added.
Aquariums and other attractions that feature captive whales and dolphins face increasing pressure from companies including Qantas, British Airways Holidays, TripAdvisor and Virgin Holidays.
SFX company Edge Innovations has created a robotic dolphin to potentially replace captive cetaceans in attractions. It was designed to simulate the movements and appearance of an adolescent bottlenose dolphin.
Image: Marineland/Edge Innovations
