SEATTLE — January 24, 2014 — Federal officials are seeking public comment on a proposal to have captive killer whale Lolita included in the endangered-species listing for Puget Sound orcas.
Activists consider the announcement Friday by the National Marine Fisheries Service another step toward releasing the whale that was captured in 1970 and is now at the Miami Seaquarium.
The federal government notes in the proposed amendment to the Endangered Species Act listing that releasing Lolita to the wild is not a guaranteed result of this change, because in some cases it’s safer to keep the endangered animal in captivity.
The Miami Seaquarium agrees with that assessment. General Manager Andrew Hertz notes that the fisheries statement says release of a captive animal into the wild may injure or kill that animal as well as pose a danger for wild populations of the same species.
‘‘Even if Lolita is officially deemed part of an endangered species group, Miami Seaquarium would already be in full compliance with any additional requirements and protections,’’ Hertz said in a statement.
Read the full story by the Associated Press at The Boston Globe