What to Know About Dolphin Captivity
"Dolphin shows are as educational about dolphins as Mickey Mouse is about real mice."
- Ric O'Barry, Dolphin Project Founder/Director
Dolphin Project has been working since Earth Day 1970 to end the billion dollar dolphin captivity industry. Dolphins have evolved for over 50 million years, and, despite being oxygen-breathing mammals, have adapted perfectly to life at sea. They have large, complex brains, are self-aware and develop close relationships with family and other pod members. Everything we have learned from them tells us they don’t belong in concrete tanks, performing tricks for our amusement.
United States: Say No to the Captive Dolphin Show!
Dolphin Project was founded by Richard (Ric) O’Barry in 1970. As a United States based grass-roots organization, it served to address the captivity industry, which was booming across the country in the 1960s. The popularity of performing dolphins had a tremendous influence over the global captive dolphin industry. Dolphin Project has several U.S. campaigns targeted at various aspects of the dolphin captivity industry including:
Petitions
Empty The Tanks Worldwide
Today, the dolphin captivity is a multi-billion dollar, global industry. Dolphins are routinely captured, traded and exploited in marine parks and aquariums all over the world. Dolphin Project is engaged in a variety of global anti-captivity campaigns with goals of educating the public, and moving authorities to phase out cetacean captivity.
Resources and Further Reading
Education is the first step to moving others to take action. Help spread the word about protecting dolphins!
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