Orca Encounter: The One Ocean Substitute Show at SeaWorld

The Sea World Orlando launched a new killer whale show that will teach the public more about one of the ocean's most powerful predators, the "Orca Encounter“.

This new show, which replaced “One Ocean”, shows the importance of games for orcas and talks a little about their hunting techniques.

Guests will learn more about the orcas in the park's care, witness natural behaviors and learn more about them than ever before.

The show was set up to be a more educational show aimed at preserving these amazing animals.

Honestly, we love to see this kind of initiative in these parks that are home to animals because we know the damage done to these animals. We see a lot of this already in the Animal kingdom and we have seen more and more at Sea World and Busch gardens.

?SeaWorld is excited about our new educational killer whale presentation, 'Orca Encounter'. Visitors will learn about the role of killer whales in the ocean ecosystem, behaviors the animals exhibit in the wild, the importance of conservation to their habitat and animal welfare practices. at the SeaWorld. This educational presentation reflects our company's mission to inspire people and protect the animals and wild wonders of the world through animal education, research, rescue and conservation," said the SeaWorld Orlando in statement.

Reserved seating and dining packages are available for this new show, and it is also possible to sit in the “Splash Zone”, that audience area that gets very wet!

Orca Encounter showings officially started on January 1, 2020.

Why was the One Ocean show dropped?

With a new CEO at the helm, SeaWorld appears to be back on track with previously announced plans to phase out entertainment-oriented animal shows.

With that, “One Ocean” was retired at the end of December 2019 in Orlando and San Antonio.

During the heat of SeaWorld's rough seas, former CEO Joel Manby took a leap in 2016 by announcing the end of orca breeding, and plans to phase out his theatrical orca shows.

A year later, “Orca Encounter” debuted in San Diego in a recently remodeled orca theater that more closely resembled the natural Pacific Northwest, where many orcas are found. The show opened to mixed reviews, but it was clear that this would be the parks future.

Less than a year after the new show debuted, controversial CEO Joel Manby was out. Since then, the company has seen a revolving door of CEOs, with the most recent, Sergio Rivera, on board in November.

In the two and a half years since the launch of “Orca Encounter” in San Diego, the company has been silent about what the future holds for its other two SeaWorld parks.

But now, with a new CEO, plans to launch the more educational presentations are moving forward.

An updated version of the “Orca Encounter” was launched in Orlando on January 1st. In San Antonio, “One Ocean” closed on December 31 and “Orca Encounter” will launch when the park reopens in late February.

Until January 5, while the park closes its holiday openings, the short educational “Killer Whales Up Close” presentation will remain in rotation, giving guests the opportunity to see orcas.

The New Orca Encounter Show

The new show is closer to some of Sea World's older shows, before the shows they are now known for.

When “One Ocean,” with its original soundtrack, debuted in 2011, it made history as the first show to remove trainers from the water with orcas.

A year earlier, trainer Dawn Brancheau was killed by an orca during a Dine with Shamu performance.

Surprisingly, both the “One Ocean” and San Diego version of “Orca Encounter” still feature trainers in close proximity to the orcas during shows, including moments when the trainers kiss the killer whales in a slide area near the front of the show. Stadium .

While the educational program may calm some critics, SeaWorld still faces decades of criticism over its use of orcas in captivity.

Of the five orcas currently at SeaWorld Orlando, only one is over 15 years old. Half of San Diego's ten orcas are 18 or younger. Two of San Antonio's orcas are under ten years old.

According to the non-profit whale group, Whale and Dolphin Conservation, male orcas in the wild can live up to 60 years, with an average lifespan of 30 years, while female orcas can live up to 90 years, with an average lifespan of 46 years. Currently, the female orca at SeaWorld Orlando, Katina, is 44 years old, while the oldest orca in SeaWorld's care is Corky II, 54, in San Diego.

Katina and Corky II are two of three orcas still in SeaWorld's care that were captured in the wild.

Nearly four decades ago, the company promised not to take in any wild-caught orcas.

That pledge, along with a 2016 pledge to end breeding, means that the 20 orcas currently in Sea World's care will be the last that the park, and probably the country, will see.

Online speculation that SeaWorld might introduce another “wow” animal to replace orcas is also undermined by this promise, as many of the most impressive species of marine life, such as whale sharks, have yet to succeed. in captivity.

The new educational presentations are important, but some pointed out that there are still valid criticisms of the size of the tank the whales are in.

Previous proposals to increase the size of orca tanks, already one of the largest in the world, and provide “water mats” have been quietly canceled, but the question remains what SeaWorld plans to do with the orcas in the long term.

Experts have reported that trainers working with orcas are trying to train the captive whales to capture live bait, which is preferred for various physical and mental health reasons.

Like a domesticated dog, orcas under Sea World's care have lost many of their natural tendencies.

It's also unclear how robust their immune system is. These concerns have meant the theoretical marine corrals that some advocate may not be a possibility. But as animal welfare concerns become more common, many large mammal animal facilities are struggling to meet public expectations.

Source: Orlando Weekly

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