Japanese Dolphinariums 101: Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium
General Info:
Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is a dolphinarium located in Motobu, Japan. You can read more about the conditions their sharks are kept in by reading the article by Koko Photography here.
News And Mentionable Incidents:
In 2000, the dolphinarium’s first captive born false killer whale was born, a female named Churu.
In 2010, a false killer whale named Kuru pushed itself out of the pool during a show and onto the concrete ground below.
In June 2013, they purchased 2 Pantropical Spotted Dolphins from Taiji Whale Museum for display. Additional source.
In November 2014, a bottlenose dolphin named Fuji died. She was originally acquired from a drive hunt in Ito in 1976. Cause of death was listed as infectious hepatitis. She had a prosthetic tail designed by Bridgestone in 2002.
In January 2016 they displayed a captive great white shark which promptly died. Additional source.
In May 2017, a second false killer whale was born at the park. She is the offspring of Momo and Tida, two of their other captive false killer whales.
Any Taiji Affiliation? Yes.
What can you do?
Knowledge is power and a lot of people would not be attending and purchasing tickets to these places if they knew what was going behind closed doors. You can reach millions on social media! Don't let a language barrier stop you! You can copy and paste the following phrases to their guests on their social media accounts linked below.
水族館でイルカショーを見る前に「ザ・コーヴ」を見てください (Please watch The Cove before buying a ticket to dolphinariums)
動物は自然界で生きるべきです (Animals belong in the wild)
You can also comment with the link DOLPHINFRIENDS.JP! It links to The Cove in Japanese!
