A peer-reviewed paper, authored by members of the Whale Sanctuary Project, National Aquarium in Baltimore, and SEA LIFE TRUST is published today in the prominent science journal PLOS Bio. It is entitled: Accredited Ocean Sanctuaries for Transforming Captive Cetacean Care.
The paper describes the growing need for ocean-based sanctuaries for captive cetaceans in response to increasing concerns about the welfare of these animals in marine parks and aquariums.
It proposes that ocean-based sanctuaries for cetaceans, which more closely mirror the natural environment to which cetaceans have adapted over millions of years, are a better option than concrete tanks for governments and organizations seeking to re-home captive whales and dolphins who cannot be released into the ocean.
These characteristics distinguish science-based sanctuaries from commercial operations that call themselves sanctuaries but are engaged in exploitation.The Whale Sanctuary Project, National Aquarium and Sea Life Trust, who are all engaged in establishing sanctuaries for whales and dolphins, worked together to produce the first foundational document for defining and implementing authentic cetacean sanctuaries and science-based professional accreditation guidelines.
These guidelines were formally adopted by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) in 2023 and can be viewed here.
Valerie Taylor, executive director of GFAS, writes: “As public attitudes continue to shift and dolphin and whale exhibits close around the world, there’s an urgent need for real alternatives – places that offer not just exemplary care, but space, choice, and a more natural life. True seaside sanctuaries can provide all of that, and now we have a way to recognize and support them.”
The paper describes three signature characteristics of authentic cetacean sanctuaries: place, principles, and practices. These characteristics distinguish science-based sanctuaries from commercial operations that merely call themselves sanctuaries but are engaged in exploitation.
- Fundamental to place is a natural environment. Authentic sanctuaries, for all wild animals, are places designed to not only allow the residents to survive, but, more importantly, to flourish.
- The foundational principle for all sanctuaries is to prioritize the well-being and autonomy of the residents. Sanctuaries free the residents to spend their days largely unfettered by human interests.
- And practices are consistent with traditional marine parks in terms of providing high quality veterinary care, regular health assessments, food, and safety. However, an important distinction is that in authentic sanctuaries breeding is prevented in order to bring an end altogether to keeping wild animals in captivity.
The creation of these standards advances accountability and transparency about what constitutes an authentic sanctuary and heralds a new stage in our understanding of and relationship to these highly intelligent, complex mammals.
The Whale Sanctuary Project, the National Aquarium, and SEA LIFE TRUST are all currently engaged in different phases of establishing accredited cetacean sanctuaries. The paper’s authors (Lori Marino, Charles Vinick, Katy Foster, Jeff Foster, Rob Hicks, Graham McGrath, John Racanelli, Janesse Brewer), all experts in the field of cetacean science at the forefront of the sanctuary movement, are proud to see their work made available through a publication as distinguished and respected as PLOS Biology. They share the collective vision of authentic cetacean sanctuaries becoming the standard of care for captive dolphins and whales until no healthy cetaceans are kept in any form of captivity.
About PLOS Biology: PLOS (Public Library of Science) Biology, a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering all aspects of biology, is designed to advance science and the communities who depend upon it and to transform research communication to fit the research process. Evolving article types and policies empower authors to share the full story behind their science with a global audience of researchers, educators, policy makers, patient advocacy groups, and the public.