Marineland in Antibes closes on January 5, what will become of the orcas in the water park

ANIMALS – A future in troubled waters. On the eve of the definitive closure of the Marineland water park in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes), scheduled for Sunday, January 5, we still do not know what will happen to the two orcas Wikie and Keijo. However, the proposed law on animal abuse which provided for the end of dolphinariums was passed at first reading in February 2021, almost four years ago. While the park is now closing its doors, the fate of the two cetaceans remains uncertain, as does that of the 4,000 other animals currently inhabiting Marineland.

In itself, the park has until December 1, 2026 to part with its two orcas still in captivity. But their state of health is worrying. In recent years, several solutions have been proposed, whether by park leaders, the government or the animal rights association One Voice. The first planned to send the two killer whales, mother and son, to a park in Kobe, in western Japan.

A request which was rejected by the Minister of Ecological Transition at the time, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, due to the lack of “ regulation ” on the “ animal welfare ». “There are parks which today are able to accommodate orcas”as “ in Spain »she then argued, evoking in particular the Tenerife park in the Canary archipelago.

As for One Voice, it proposes the solution of the marine sanctuary in Nova Scotia, in Western Canada.

Several avenues considered, but…

So what is it today? “Following the government’s refusal to transfer them to Japan, we are considering several avenues within water parks that meet European standards in terms of animal welfare”declared to Parisian a Marineland spokesperson. The park located on the island of Tenerife and suggested by Agnès Pannier-Runacher “ is one avenue among others »confirms the French marine zoo.

As for the marine sanctuary in Canada, several parameters still pose problems: the acclimatization of orcas would be potentially complicated, and it “is not yet operational”according to the Marineland spokesperson.

In any case, the decision to be able to move these animals has not yet been made. Indeed, a court decision in December prohibited the transfer of orcas pending the end of an expert assessment on their living conditions, underlines BFMTV.

An operation that will take “ weeks »

And once the green light has been given, we shouldn’t expect a quick start, far from it. You will still have to choose the transfer site, and then, this “will take weeks”assures the park spokesperson Parisian.

In addition to the approval of the authorities, each animal will need to have its own certificate, issued in France by the regional directorates of the environment, planning and housing.

« Once the animal movement permit has been obtainedit will still be necessary to organize their transfer. The orcas will in fact have to be placed in huge pools of water, transferred by truck from Antibes to Nice airport then installed inside a cargo plane to be moved to the place which will welcome them »explains the spokesperson.

Fear of euthanasia for other animals

Finally, in addition to the two cetaceans, the park is home to no less than 4,000 animals of 150 different species, including dolphins, sea lions, turtles and corals. Everyone will also have to leave the park and be redispatched to other centers around the world.

Due to a lack of places in European aquatic centers, the dolphins should be sent to China, according to the president of One Voice at Parisian. The sea lions and seals are supposed to join the Madrid zoo.

The other animals should be sent to other parks in Spain in particular, but the president of the association It’s enough!, Christine Grandjean, fears from the daily that “the closure of Marineland does not also result in euthanasia”.