You may not have heard of Tilikum (Tilly), however he is the most famous killer whale alive. Not only is he the largest mammal ever to be kept in captivity (weighing over 5,400 kg), he also lives up to his name as a 'killer' whale. Throughout the 30 years he has been in captivity, he has brutally murdered 3 people, and is well known to be aggressive and unpredictable. However, this got me thinking, why does he feel the need to lash out, and is this common with captive killer whales? Wild Orca Pod The Killer Whale (Orcinus Orca) is the largest of the dolphins and are one of the world's most powerful predators. They feast on marine mammals such as seals, sea lions, and even whales and sharks, employing teeth that can be over four inches (10 centimetres) long. Orcas live in large families, or pods, of sometimes over 40 whales. Each whale in this family is related, and will stay together for life. The offspring of a killer whale will never leave it's mother's side. Each pod has a specific set of noises unique to them, which other members of the pod can recognise from far away. These noises use echolocation, and are for communication and hunting. These animals are intelligent, caring, and there has never been as case of a killer whale attacking a human in the wild. So what drove Tilikum to attack? To answer this question, you have to look at the events leading up to the attack. Tilikum at Sealand Tilikum was captured near Iceland in November of 1983, and at only 2 years of age, when he was about 13 feet long, he was torn away from his family and ocean home. After his aggressive capture, he was kept in a cement holding tank for about a year at Hafnarfjorour Marine Zoo, Iceland, as he waited to be transferred to a new marine park. Held captive against his will, all he could do was swim in small circles and float aimlessly at the surface of the water. Finally, he was moved to the 'Sealand of the Pacific' in British Columbia, Canada, and lived in a 100ft by 50ft pool, just 35ft deep. He lived here with two other dominant females (Haida and Nootka) who were older than him, and regularly attacked him. He was forced to perform every hour, on the hour, eight times a day, seven days a week. The stress and exhaustion caused, eventually gave him painful stomach ulcers. On February 21st, 1991, Sealand trainer Keltie Byrne fell into the pool containing all three orcas. She was pulled to the bottom of the enclosure by Tilikum, tossed among the three Orcas, and ultimately drowned. This was Tilikum's first murder. Tilikum in SeaWorld's Believe show Shortly after, Sealand closed down and Tilikum was bought by SeaWorld. Tilikum soon became a major part of SeaWorld's breeding programme, and now 54% of SeaWorld's orcas have his genes. However, his suffering was not over. Over the course of the 21 years at SeaWorld, where he was confined to a tank containing 0.0001% of the quantity of water that he would inhabit in the wild, Tilikum was involved in multiple incidents of aggression. The stress of captivity drove Tilikum to exhibit abnormal repetitive behaviour, including chewing on metal gates and the concrete walls. Tilly also presented a collapsed dorsal fin, which is rarely seen in the wild, and shows signs of poor health. It was in this artificial pool where Tilikum took his next two victims. On July 6, 1999, a 27 year old Daniel P. Dukes was found dead and nude, draped over Tilikum's back. Dukes had visited SeaWorld the previous day and stayed after the park had closed, he then evaded security and entered the orca tank. An autopsy of the body found multiple wounds, abrasions and broken bones, and had concluded he may have died from hypothermia and drowning. Dawn and Tilikum performing But however, the final and perhaps most brutal, was the tragic killing of Dawn Beancheau (Tilikum's personal trainer). Dawn was finishing one of her 'believe' shows with Tilly, when he grabbed her and submerged her. SeaWorld reported that Tilly had grabbed Dawn's ponytail, and tried to blame Dawn for her death, however eyewitnesses states that Tilly had grabbed Dawn's arm, and it was in no way Dawn's fault. This cover-up by SeaWorld caused great outrage, and spurred the production of the film 'Blackfish' which shows the hideous truth behind SeaWorld. However, the most shocking news, is that Tilikum is still being used in SeaWorld's live shows, and is still a large part of the extensive breeding programme. Even with new precautions put in place, this huge whale is still a deadly killer, who has been driven to insanity, and should not be used as a performing animal. Sorry for the long blog post, but after watching 'Blackfish' I felt it was necessary to document Tilly's story. I believe this is a tragic outcome of human greed. The constant desire for money and success had led SeaWorld to forget what this carnivore was capable of, and treated him as a performing circus animal. I think in years to come, we will look back at stories like these, and feel ashamed of what we did. Wild animals, like Tilly, should not be forced to endure a life in captivity. And if we choose to captivate these animals, we should be prepared to deal with the subsequent tragic consequences. Free Tilly campaign Thank you for reading, and please share this story to raise awareness of this issue.
I want Peta to stop using Dawn Brancheaus Life as a propaganda stunt because ever since her death they use her as an excuse in there protests it is not right and needs to stop
The following pictures are owned by SeaWorld and credits listed.
"Blackfish" tells the story of a killer whale named Tilikum, accused of killing three people but being used for breeding dozens of orcas for seaworld.
A U.S. appeals court on Friday upheld a federal occupational safety agency's finding against SeaWorld following the workplace death of one of its killer whale trainers.
DAWN Brancheau always dreamed of working at SeaWorld – but it was a job that would eventually kill her when she was attacked by an orca. Exactly 14 years ago today, the beloved trainer was dr…
The following pictures are owned by SeaWorld and credits listed.
As an animal lover, it's hard to see cruelty to animals, but sadly, it is happening all over the world.
The Dodo serves up emotionally and visually compelling, highly sharable animal-related stories and videos to help make caring about animals a viral cause.
Tilikum, the six-ton killer whale, has not appeared in a show at the Orlando marine park since he killed Dawn Brancheau more than a year ago.
