Dolphin Cove (Seaworld)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Dolphin Cove at SeaWorld | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Location | San Antonio, TX; San Diego, CA; and Orlando, FL |
| Website | seaworld.com |
| Owner | Busch Entertainment Corporation |
| Operating season | All Year |
| Rides | total |
| Slogan | As real as it gets. |
Dolphin Cove (which is part of the main attraction Key West) is a SeaWorld attraction, which can be found at all SeaWorld parks and holds about 700,000 gallons of water. [1]
Dolphin Cove was designed to reflect a natural ecosystem and has a underwater viewing area underneath it where the visitors can watch the dolphins while listening to relaxing music[2]. Additionally, visitors are even able listening to the dolphin's communications[3].
The Dolphin Cove habitat is one of the largest dolphin pools in existence, on which the visitor can directly interact with the dolphins and features, approximately, two foot high waves, a sandy beach and a naturalistic imitating coral reef.
Contents |
[edit] How to find Dolphin Cove when visiting SeaWorld
The Main attraction Key West, is located just to the left of the main entrance to SeaWorld (see map).
[edit] Feeding the dolphins
At designated times throughout the day, visitors can feed the dolphins for 5 dollars per fish-tray and thereby interact with these animals[4]. Additionally trainers will give informational and educational speeches about the Bottlenose Dolphin[5].
[edit] Interaction without food
Down to the end of the Dolphin Cove there is an area where visitors, if they don't have food for the dolphins, can still stand right at the edge of the lagoon. Most of the dolphins will be down with the visitors who have food, but there is usually a trainer over in that special area, with food, to assure that there is at least one dolphin for those visitors to interact with.[6]
[edit] Specimen of Dolphins
Dolphin Cove mainly consists of Bottlenose Dolphins, one of the most common and well-known dolphins. The dolphins are shifted between Dolphin Cove, Dolphin Nursery and Discovery Cove; depending on pregnancies and space availability.
Bottlenose Dolphins can be found worldwide, in warm waters such as the Gulf of Mexico.
[edit] Locations
Dolphin Cove is located at every SeaWorld adventure park, which includes SeaWorld Orlando, SeaWorld San Diego and SeaWorld San Antonio.
 Dolphin Cove in Orlando |
 Dolphin Cove in San Diego |
 Dolphin Cove in San Antonio |
[edit] History
- When founded in 1964, SeaWorld San Diego was the first of its kind to feature the first Dolphin Cove.
- In 1970 the second park SeaWorld Ohio was build in Aurora, Ohio, near Cleveland; but was sold to Six Flags in January, 2001. It also featured a Dolphin Cove.[7]
- In 1973 the third Dolphin Cove opened together with SeaWorld Orlando[8].
- In 1988 the fourth Dolphin Cove in SeaWorld San Antonio opened its doors.[9].
- On February 28, 2008 Busch Entertainment announced plans to open another SeaWorld park in Dubai, UAE. It is, yet, unknown whether or not the park will feature a Dolphin Cove.
[edit] Criticism
Organizations such as the World Society for the Protection of Animals and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society are against the captivity of dolphins and Orcas. Bottlenose Dolphins might not have a shorter lifespan in captivity (like Orcas) [10] but cannot make much use of echolocation due to sensory deprivation. Small pools and the chlorination of the water are living conditions marked for criticism.
SeaWorld's methods for obtaining animals in the past have also been criticized. Up until 1993, SeaWorld was among several parks across the United States that imported dolphins from Japanese drive hunts and SeaWorld's attempt to capture several Orcas in Puget Sound in the early 1970's using powerboats, airplanes and explosives to drive the animals resulted in the capture permit being revoked.[11][12] In 1995, SeaWorld announced that it would no longer capture dolphins and whales from the wild.[13] The animals are now obtained through breeding including artificial insemination, loans, and purchases from other marine parks around the world. [13].[14]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.orlando-florida.net/seaworld/attractions/dolphin-cove.htm
- ^ http://www.dwtickets.com/Discount_SeaWorld_Tickets_s/56.htm
- ^ https://www.orlandoattractions.com/index.php?id=68
- ^ http://www.travelwithyourkids.com/destinations/seaworld-what-to-do
- ^ http://swbg-adventurecamps.com/infobooks/Bottlenose/home.html
- ^ http://orlandofuntickets.com/SeaWorld-Insider-Tips.php
- ^ http://web.archive.org/web/20000419111944/seaworld.com/seaworld/sw_ohio/swoframe.html
- ^ http://www.traveldk.com/orlando/dk/highlight/seaworld-orlando
- ^ http://sanantonio.about.com/od/sanantoniothemeparks/p/seaworld.htm
- ^ J.D. van der Toorn (1999), Survival rate study of marine mammals in captivity, retrieved November 1, 2006.
- ^ Courtney S.Vail and Denise Risch (2006), Driven by demand, chapter International trade in drive hunt dolphins. Retrieved October 13, 2006
- ^ Eric de Place and Kathy Fletcher (2005), Increasing orca population is a sign we can save the Sound, article retrieved November 1, 2006.
- ^ a b Animal Liberation Inc. (date unknown), Capture for entertainment, article retrieved March 23, 2007.
- ^ Captive Orca's dying to entertain you
[edit] See also
[edit] External Links
- The SeaWorld Animal list
- Official SeaWorld website
- SeaWorld insider tips
- SeaWorld at WikiAttractions
- Captive Dolphin Database
- National Marine Fisheries Service - Application for a Permit for Public Display under the Marine Mammal Protection Act
- United States Department of Commerce - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: Review of Public Display Permit Application
|
|||||
