Special Issue Survey of Cetaceans in Captive Care

312 CouquiaudThe greatest progression of new facilities was inMexico. There are possibly many more facilitiesin China, Russia, and other former Soviet Unionrepublics where military facilities were numerousand, when they closed down, they sold their animalsto display facilities. There are also several travelingshows in Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, and probablyother South American and Asian countries.The following map (Figure 3.1) shows therecorded facilities in 1997. The map clearly showsthat a large majority of institutions are located inthe Northern hemisphere, in warm and temperateclimates between latitude 20º N—just below theTropic of Cancer—and 60º N. They are mainlycoastal. The two countries with the longest historyof exhibiting cetaceans also have the largest numberof facilities: the United States and Japan. Each have39 display and research institutions.ResultsForty-four questionnaires were received over aperiod of 12 months from 22 countries, representing28% of the questionnaires sent.Participation from Asia was better than thatfrom North America, despite the language barrier.Participation from the Pacific region was good, andcountries in Europe were fairly well represented.This gives a wide geographical representation and,thus, enables comparisons of a variety of facilitiesacross a broad range of geographical locations.This survey helped to identify and understandvarious elements essential to the dolphins’ welfarein their controlled environments. It enabled thestudy of existing facilities around the world, whichprovided new insights into previously unknownfacilities in countries where language, communication,development, or economical factors oftenprevent them from participating in the activeinformation exchange of the international marinemammal professional community.The main results of the study are given in thefollowing section. They are all based on the statisticalanalysis of the survey data, except the sectionon cetacean species in captivity, which includesa comparison between the survey results and theentire database.Temporal Distribution of Cetacean FacilitiesThe temporal distribution of sampled facilities wasexamined to determine if the sample of surveyedfacilities was representative in construction dateand age and, therefore, would produce accurateinformation on questions related to design trends,construction techniques, and so on.Construction dates of sampled facilities (n =41) ranged from the early 1950s to the late 1990s(Figure 3.2). Construction was present in everydecade between 1950 and 2000; however, alldecades were not represented equally (KruskalWallis, H = 37.976, p < 0.0001). Many sampledfacilities were built in the late 1960s and in the1990s. The late 1960s period corresponded to thefirst surge of interest in dolphins—at the time ofthe Flipper TV series in the USA and Europe.The 1990s period witnessed a second surge ofFigure 3.1. World map of cetacean facilities in 1997 (indicated by a black dot)