Display system
Dolphinarium Display Tank
Holding cetaceans for public shows
What it is
A purpose-built pool confines dolphins and other cetaceans within sight of an audience. The same water is where they are trained, perform, breed and receive veterinary care.
Where it sits in the system
A dolphinarium combines animal housing, show schedules, food-reward training, visitor education and paid entertainment. The animals are the exhibit and the tank is the venue.
Welfare concern
Against the ranges these animals cover in the wild, a tank cuts travel, diving, foraging and the acoustic world they live by down to a fraction of themselves, and leaves the animal almost no say in which others it is held with. Abnormal behaviour and chronic stress are the core welfare problems.
Worth being precise about
Facility size, enrichment, social management, rescue status and quality of care vary between operators. The unresolved question is whether captivity can meet a cetacean's needs even where a facility is run well.
