Blackfish vs. Seaworld Thursday November 16 1. What is it all about? 2 Blackfish × Documentary which details the story of Tilikum the Killer Whale × Reviews the story of Dawn Brancheau’s murder × Detailed accounts of former Seaworld employees and their stories of the animals and their treatment × Directed by Gabriela Cowperwaithe, not an animal activist, not a biologist, not a former Seaworld employee. 3 2. What do you need to know? 4 Wild Orcas × Male Antarctic type A killer whales can reach lengths of 9.2 m (30 ft.) making them the largest known killer whales. × large teeth are conical and interlocking. Toothed whales have only one set of teeth; they are not replaced once lost. × Straight dorsal fin × Life expectancy of 60-70 for Males & 80-100 for females × Strong family bonds-orcas stay with their pods for life × Distinct language patterns between pods 5 Orca Appearance at Seaworld × 100% of males suffer Dorsal collapse × More than 50% suffer moderate to severe wear and damage to lower jaw × Life expectancy of 30-50 years × Aggressive with other orcas and humans-due to broken family bonds/stress × Frequently ill 6 3. Tilikum’s Story 7 8 Who is Tilikum? × One of the largest orca’s in captivity-22 feet in length/12,500 lbs × Captured near Iceland in 1983 at 2 years × Moved to Sealand of the Pacific in B.C. × In 1991, after an incident with a trainer Sealand closed and Tilikum was sold to SeaWorld for their breeding program × 54% of captive orcas have a genetic link to Tilly × Due to captive conditions, Tilikum became known for aggressive tendencies and spent a year in isolation × Related to Dawn Brancheau’s death × Died in captivity in January 2017 at 35 years old 9 4. SeaWorld’s Response 10 SeaWorld × SeaWorld claims that Blackfish is not a documentary but rather “propaganda” × SeaWorld states that the 2 central premises that Blackfish has built its argument are false 11 So what is the real story? 12 In order to decide × We will be watching the documentary “Blackfish” and analyzing the evidence for: × Ethos × Pathos × Logos × Complete your viewing guide as we go along. × Be sure to identify the doc’s claim 13 Identify the claim presented by the documentary. What are 3 pieces of evidence to support? Homework 14.