VIRGINIA KEY, FLA. (WSVN) - South Florida activists came together, Saturday, to call for the release of Lolita, the Miami Seaquarium’s longtime killer whale, from her home of nearly five decades.
Participants, who called the demonstration the “2017 Miracle March for Lolita,” said the 50-year-old marine mammal has been forced to live in isolation for more than 30 years inside an illegally small tank.
“We have hopes for her to be released into a sea pen sanctuary back in her native waters of the Pacific Northwest, over in Washington, where she will have the support of her mother, Ocean Sun, which is alive and thriving,” said activist Karina Dionne.
Andrew Hertz, the Miami Seaquarium’s general manager, responded to the protest on Saturday with a statement that reads: “It would be reckless and cruel to jeopardize Lolita’s health and safety by moving her from her home of 47 years. Miami Seaquarium is not willing to experiment with her life in order to appease a fringe group.”
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