Orcas continue to amaze us. In the wild, they keep us guessing and embody the wonder of nature. In captivity, it’s a different story. Only weeks after falling under scrutiny for a video of an orca panicking in a medical pool, Spain’s Loro Parque is in hot water again. Cell phone footage has surfaced from a tourist in the wildlife park that shows a captive orca named Morgan landing herself on a slab of concrete in what people have called an “attempted suicide.”
Morgan performed for tourists at Loro Parque in Tenerife, Spain, along with five other orcas that are owned by SeaWorld. Immediately following the show Morgan then launched herself onto a concrete slab where she stayed for more than 20 minutes.
After posting the video to their site, The Dolphin Project have said, “While we cannot explain the reason for her behavior, the juxtaposition of a previously-wild orca against the stark backdrop of the park’s performance area is unsettling, to say the least.”
Morgan was born in the wild, but she was rescued in 2010 off the coast of the Netherlands under a “rescue, rehabilitation and release” permit. At the time of her rescue, Morgan was dehydrated and emaciated. The Dolphin Project say their videographer was not allowed to film how the scene ended, “Sadly, she was still out of the water by the time the videographers had to leave.”
(Via Brobible)