Liu Quansheng, Manager , Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park, China: Save the Pilot Whales

Pilot Whales are highly intelligent animals who want and need to live in complex social groups. In captivity they will usually have been separated from their families, often in cruel hunts and some when they are very young.

Wild whales can swim up to 100 miles a day, hunting and playing. In captivity they have very little space and cannot behave naturally. A concrete tank can never replace their ocean home.

The mental, emotional and physical stress that a captive whale suffers can weaken their immune system and make them prone to disease. Even though captive whales are kept in an environment free of predators, pollution and other threats, the death rate for whales in captivity is much higher.

Wild capture of whales is brutal. Entire pods may be targeted and many animals killed or injured. Only the young and fit are taken. These are the future generations for these already vulnerable wild populations and their loss has a hugely negative impact on group dynamics.

Dolphinariums and Aquariums have no right to put these amazing creatures in captivity. Captive whale shows are not education.