The Deafening Silence of an Empty Pool and Voiceless Dolphins

A lone trainer watches over Monterey Bay and the empty marine mammal pools at Long Marine Lab (photo: TM Williams) This week in the pre-dawn hours we lifted Primo, the bottlenose dolphin, out of his home of 22 years and into a carrier in the back of a covered truck. Under the watchful eyes and gentle hands of his long-time caregivers, his veterinary team and SeaWorld animal care staff, he made the slow journey to his new aquarium residence. He was the last of my research "zoo" at Long Marine Lab on the University of California- Santa Cruz campus, the last of an eclectic assortment of rescued and retired dolphins, endangered seals and sea otters that taught us so much about the biology of marine mammals. Today the old dolphin and I were placed into hibernation for the next year to make way for pool renovations and to face an uncertain future. As Primo left I wondered if this was the fate of all zoos and aquariums, and the destiny of SeaWorld. I wondered what was going to happen to all of the wild animals that we were trying to save. These are uncertain times for big charismatic animals in the oceans and on land. Many populations are declining. Money is scarce for pool repairs and big mammal research, made worse by the public's vocal distrust of scientists, zoos and aquariums. Many biologists are simply giving up. The marine mammal programs at the University of California- San Diego and the University of Hawaii are now gone. We are the struggling last of our kind-...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news