Exclusive: Shocking Footage of Orca Panicking in Medical Pool

Is This Morgan?

Shot by an anonymous activist, this new, shocking footage shows one of the orcas at Loro Parque, a zoo located in Tenerife, Spain, panicking in a small medical pool.

The orca is obviously in huge distress and rams its head forcefully against the metal gate in what seems to be an attempt to escape. Loro Parque is the largest tourist attraction in Spain. SeaWorld owns all six orcas at the park, including Morgan who was captured off the coast of the Netherlands in June of 2010. The orcas at Loro Parque are trained to perform for food several times a day in front of large, cheering audiences. This video shows the amount of stress and cruelty imposed on orcas as a result of confinement to small, barren tanks.

Ric and I traveled to Loro Parque last year to carry out an investigation of Loro Parque’s orca display, which ironically, is called “Orca Ocean.” We were shocked at the poor living conditions and commercial exploitation of the orcas and bottlenose dolphins there.

Watch the video below and be sure to turn the volume all the way up.