Photo: Roberto Ferrari/Public Domain. The sanctuary is the first of its kind in the USA and is set to be completed by 2020. Dolphins, as scientists have long proclaimed to be highly intelligent, require freedom of their own habitat to socialise, and achieve the right amount of stimulation to be able to express themselves. The warm-blooded mammals are known to suffer from psychological breakdown and tend to become aggressive in captivity.
A team to scout for near-ideal locations for the dolphins in Florida and the Caribbean has been appointed..
Although the aquarium had banned dolphin performances a few years ago, the Marine Mammal Pavilion at the National Aquarium is still operating as a tourist attraction. The organization now is readying for a paradigm shift to working as a non-profit aquatic conservation organization. This is a move widely lauded by animal welfare activists who have been painstakingly working to alter the opinion of people against animals in captivity by creating awareness and fighting for a better and ethical treatment of animals the world over.
“We're thrilled, and we think that this is really a breakthrough decision," said Lori Marino, the president of the Whale Sanctuary Project. “This is going to improve the animals' welfare enormously. It's going to restore to them a little bit of what was denied them all these years, living as performers in an aquarium."
As far as the cost for the sanctuary is estimated, the aquarium authorities said they relied on philanthropic donations to meet the expenses. Also, in order to prepare the dolphins for the move, they will be trained to move in and out of transition docks
Source: The New York Times.
