A video was posted online in which two orcas hovered in an algae-infected swimming pool in southern France, which attracted worldwide attention to Cetaceans, 24-year-old Wikie and her 11-year-old calf Keijo.
France has been struggling to find a new home for mothers and sons as their owner, Marine Park in the French Riviera, closed in a legal program that bans marine mammals.
Marineland was established in the city of Antibes in 1970 and was not publicly public in January after the decline in attendance and the 2021 law.
In February, the park’s management submitted a request to urgently transfer two orcas, also known as Killer Whale12 dolphins have also been to two parks in Spain, but the move was blocked by Spanish authorities, saying the facilities were adapted for them.
After posting the video, in a social media post, Canadian NGO vandals said: “The situation in Marineland Antibes is an emergency.”
"Leaving them in a closed facility, limited to a collapsed, worn tank, is simply not an option," it said.
The group warns that if two orcas get sick, they “could probably be euthanized or succumb to a worsening environment.”
The video was taken earlier this month by a drone and showed two orcas and dolphins in the tanks with green edges and algae, which were previously used in devices previously used in salt water for other marine animals.
The park management contacted AFP and said the orca and dolphin pools were well maintained, with about 50 employees still working for the well-being of the animals.
It says the algae visible in the image is a normal phenomenon, he explains that when the water is warm, the algae pores of the pool are filled every spring, which fill the pool.
Management says they are not harmful to animals and are often removed by brushing their teeth.
This explanation was supported by Mike Riddell, who managed the park for 26 years before being fired in 2006.
AFP images taken during a news visit in May 2020 showed similar fine algae covering the edge of the swimming pool.
But videos of the tidal destroyers prompted a strong reaction, which even included death threats to employees, according to park management.
Officials said they shared NGO concerns, but the park tried to find an emergency solution with French Environment Minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher.
AFP contacted AFP and ministry officials said authorities “make sure animals continue to be placed in future destinations under good conditions,” and the park is seeking “alternative solutions” to move forward.
"The only option left"
The BBC previously reported that animal rights groups want to relocate orcs in whale sanctuaries where they have more space to swim and not be forced to breed or perform in performances.
According to the BBC, Lori Marino, president of the Whale Sanctuary Project (WSP), said their website in Nova Scotia was "the only option left." Her group bid is still on the way, and despite the French Ministry of Ecology rejecting previous offers earlier this year, it is still reversing the orcas in the eastern Canadian province.
A petition urged the French government to send Wiki and Keio to coastal shelters in Nova Scotia, and in October last year three environmental idols - Dr. Jane Goodell, Dr. Sylvia Earl and Jean-Michel Cousteau - signed a letter suggesting the relocation of orcas to sea shelters.
After the Spanish ban decision, Malinlan had hoped to transfer orcas to Japanese parks. But the move was blocked by the French government, who demanded the transfer to European parks with high welfare standards.
But the Spanish government last month rejected a solution involving the only facility in Spain’s Tenerife, which the government said was “not meeting the requirements”, according to French officials.
NGOs, including a Voice and Marine Shepherd, have asked for permission to send experts to Marineland to check for orcas.
Two types of mammals are born in captivity and cannot survive alone.
The long-term solution agreed by the French ministry and NGOs should see the establishment of a marine reserve that can care for orcas and dolphins in semi-wild conditions.
According to Riddell, the solution costs $220-3.3 million.
It is estimated that Wikie and Keijo still have decades of life under the right conditions.