Monday morning I biked to Marine Park here in Bellingham. It’s probably the last time I’ll get to before I head off on a trip. I really wanted to get one last visit in before I left because this place has become so important to me. It has been where I’ve gone to reflect and find peace in the midst of the chaos.
Imagine living your entire life in your living room, the vast world outside becoming an alien concept. For #dolphins in #MarineParks, this analogy becomes a harsh reality. Confined within the limited dimensions of an artificial enclosure, these sentient creatures endure a daily assault of bright lights and booming noises, while their instinctive urge to explore and socialize is constantly thwarted.
Imagine the dolphin’s tale in two distinct scenarios – the wild #ocean and a #MarinePark. Out in the open ocean, a dolphin travels kilometres per day, dive deep into the depths, and engage with a diverse community of sea life. Contrast this with a life spent circling the same limited, chlorinated, sterile, concrete #tank, day in and day out.
Captive dolphins have to swim their #enclosures 500 times per day to match the distance that wild #dolphins swim.