Starting today, 14 December 2023, aquariums in South Korea holding captive dolphins and whales are banned from purchasing new cetaceans for display. Most of the 16 bottlenose dolphins within the four facilities in South Korea are wild-caught from Taiji, Japan and all five beluga whales are wild-caught from Russian waters. The announcement was made earlier this week after the Ministry of Environment amended the Act on the Management of Zoos and Aquariums, meaning that now zoos and aquariums must go through a separate licensing system following the requirements set by the ministry to operate, as well as prohibiting the facilities from allowing visitors to touch or feed the marine mammals.
To be licensed as an aquarium, the facilities must provide habitats that match characteristics of the animals’ natural environments which is pretty impossible for cetaceans in a confined barren environment, however, the existing facilities have to meet the criteria within five years. The revised act also provides specific guidelines regarding the procedures and schedules for conducting routine medical examinations on captive cetaceans. There are calls for the Lotte World Aquarium to release their lone beluga whale Bella to a sanctuary when one is established, and that may possibly take her.
