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2012 Animals' Advoc. 1 (2012)

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The Loneliest Orca
ALDF and others file lawsuit on behalf of Lolita, captive killer whale

SHE PASSES HER DAYS SWIMMING in endless
circles around a barren tank that even the
USDA considers too small. But for Lolita,
the only orca at Seaquarium in Miami,
that's hardly the worst of it. Orcas (also
known as killer whales) are highly intel-
ligent, social animals, and Lolita has been
separated from her family since 1970,
when she was taken from her pod-part
of the Southern Resident orca popula-
tion-in the North Pacific Ocean. Each
day she is forced to leap into the air for
spectators at the South Florida amuse-
ment park.
For decades, animal advocates have
campaigned to help Lolita, and now the
law may be on her side. In 2005, the

National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) listed the Southern Residents as
protected under the federal Endangered
Species Act (ESA), determining that
whale-capture operations in the 1970s
had contributed to their decline and that
these animals are in danger of becoming
extinct. Although the Act protects Lolita's
pod and the rest of the Southern Resident
population against harassment and harm,
Lolita herself has been excluded, leading
the Animal Legal Defense Fund, along
with People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA) and three individual
plaintiffs, to file suit against NMFS for
illegally carving out the ESA exemption
continued on page 4

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