Singapore Scene:

1,000 gather to petition against dolphin enclosure

"Dolphins are very intelligent and should not be held captive in an area out of their natural habitat because it puts a lot of strain on them, and they cannot lead a healthy life."

- Alicia Pan, 26

Traditional exhibits center on animals performing tricks that are exaggerated variations of their natural behaviors. These tricks prevent the audience from contemplating the barren concrete enclosures, so different from the environment from which these animals have been taken. Jacques Cousteau believed that captive dolphins are conditioned and deformed and bear little resemblance to dolphins living in freedom in the sea. It's like studying human psychology only in prisons, which leads, obviously, to misinterpretations and absurd generalizations.

Miami Seaquarium has lost 64 of 89 dolphins since 1972. Of those whose age could be determined, more than half died at 10 or younger, including 16 in their first year.

Dolphins have been kept in terrible conditions; for such a graceful, wide-ranging animal no holding pools can be adequate. Similarly, no-one should be fooled by the attractive backdrops which some dolphinariums add to their pools. This is purely for our benefit not the dolphins.

Current conservation philosophies around the world focus on saving natural habitats: removing dolphins from the wild is contrary to this philosophy.

The survival rate of captive-born whale and dolphin calves is lower than those in the wild.

Any arguments presented by marine parks that they are involved in breeding programs are without foundation. Their primary reason for achieving a successful breeding program is to maintain a supply of performing animals, as regulations gradually make it more difficult to capture wild dolphins.