After living in captivity for over 50 years, an orca named Lolita will return to her home in the Pacific. The Miami Seaquarium announced her release on March 30, in collaboration with the animal-rights group Friends of Toki. Lolita was captured from the Pacific coast when she was only 4 years old. She was named Tokitae or “Toki” back then. At age 57, she is the second-oldest killer whale living in captivity, with 58-year-old Corky at SeaWorld San Diego being the first.
Freeing an Orca from Life-Long Captivity
“This is a very special day,” said Eduardo Albor, CEO of the Dolphin Company, which manages the Miami Seaquarium. “It is amazing to see how many things you can achieve in one year when actions take place of words.”
Lolita’s mother, Ocean Sun, is 95-years-old, and although orcas can live up to 90s years, researchers believe she is still alive. They hope Lolita will reunite with her and the rest of her pod. “(There’s) the opportunity for her to acoustically connect with her family, without a doubt,” Charles Vinick, the executive director of the Whale Sanctuary Project.
“She was four when she was taken, so she was learning to hunt. She knows her family song,” said Raynell Morris, an elder of the Lummi Indian Tribe in Washington. He also serves on the board of Friends of Toki, the local nonprofit dedicated to the orca. “She’ll remember, but it will take time.”
However, there will be a transition process to help adapt Lolita to open water and teach her to hunt for food. Her relocation is set to take place in the next 18 to 24 months. Until then, she will be flown to Washington State and live in a natural sea pen where she can strengthen her muscles to swim long distances. She’d be taught to follow a boat that’d take her out for “walks,” which will become longer and longer depending on her progress. She will also be monitored at all times by veterinary staff to ensure she stays healthy.
“A Day in the Life of Lolita”
Jim Irsay, who owns the Indianapolis Colts, financially supports her release. “The story of Lolita the orca has been near and dear to my heart. I am proud — and enthusiastic — to play a role in finally returning Lolita to her native Pacific Northwest,” Irsay said in a press release. He revealed that the cost of her relocation and release could amount to “eight figures,” as trainers teach her to swim and hunt. “She doesn’t know how to do that anymore,” he said. “She’s been in captivity too long.“
It’s no wonder that animal rights activists have been petitioning for Lolita’s freedom for years. Despite her retirement from performing in 2021, the 20-foot-long whale lived in a tank that was 80 feet by 35 feet, the world’s smallest orca tank. Living in small tanks like that can severely shorten the lifespan of killer whales who swim about 100 miles a day in the wild. Many of her animal colleagues had already died. Celebrities like Johnny Depp and Lindsay Lohan have campaigned for her release, but it took an inspection in 2017 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, who discovered the poor treatment of animals at the Seaquarium. [2]
A ‘Free Willy’ Moment?
Jason Colby, an environmental historian and professor at the University of Victoria, explains how Lolita was captured in his book about the history of killer whales. In the 1970s, local fishermen would trap orca calves away from their pods, separate them, and sell them to amusement parks. However, he is not optimistic about Lolita’s future. “I fear that when people see that she’s being brought home, people will imagine it’s just going to be a sort of Free Willy moment where she swims over and connects with her family. I can’t imagine that happening.”
He believes Lolita will continue to live in a sea pen that connects her to her home in the wild while remaining dependent on human caretakers. Nevertheless, this is a triumphs for animal activism. “If her coming back makes people commit to making sure that this orca family has a healthy place to live then it will be a great success,” Colby said. [3]
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Sources
- “An orca whale that has spent 50 years at a Florida aquarium is returning to her home waters, where she will hopefully reunite with her mother.” Erin McDowell. March 31, 2023
- “Lolita the orca has been in captivity for 52 years. Now she may be returning to the ocean.” Euro News Green. Doloresz Katanich. April 3, 2023
- “Miami Seaquarium is returning Lolita the killer whale to her home waters.” BBC News. Chelsea Bailey. April 1, 2023