Von Marlis Zoschke
Dertour has ended its partnership with zoos that make orcas and dolphins perform tricks or swim with people. Hopefully, those in charge at Loro Parque will also come to their senses. Once the first step has been taken, urgently needed changes in Tenerife will come more to the fore.
The killer whale, also known as the orca, is the largest species of dolphin. It lives in all the oceans, but mainly in the Arctic Ocean. Fish and all the marine mammals found in its habitat form part of its daily diet. However, the orca is not considered to be at risk. It has no need to fear whalers. The young have a higher mortality rate.
In captivity, even the elderly die earlier, whereas in their natural habitat they can live to a ripe old age. Keeping these animals in waters closer to the equator than to the Arctic Ocean should not be permitted. It is hard to understand why such large animals should live in a tank where, if possible, they are also expected to perform tricks. Must animals really be anthropomorphised? Tourists do not have to swim with dolphins either.
Boat trips instead of whale shows on Tenerife
To see dolphins, a boat trip around Tenerife is often all it takes. When a boat is out at sea, it doesn’t take long for dolphins to approach.
Animal welfare is not a priority in the Canary Islands. Stray dogs were invariably kicked, whilst my own dog was kept on a chain. His food bowl contained fish scraps with bones in them.
Yet there are countries that care about these animals. In Patagonia, we once had a unique encounter with a baleen whale. The largest of this species is the blue whale, which is around 33 metres long and weighs 200 tonnes. Our whale wasn’t quite that huge, though.
Whales are majestic, and not just off the Canary Islands
Every morning, the boatman would head out onto the Atlantic and whistle a special tune. He’d apparently befriended a female whale. That morning, too, he whistled, and before long we saw a huge tail fin rise out of the sea some distance away.
The animal was so big that its head was right up against our side. It could easily have capsized us. The biggest surprise, however, was that the whale had brought her calf with her – about three metres long. It had been born just a few days earlier. You never forget an experience like that.
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