Nearly 100 Captive Orcas and Belugas at Risk of Drowning, Freezing to Death | National Geographic
The “whale jail” is in legal limbo while Russia’s government scrambles for answers.
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Read "Time running out for orcas, belugas trapped in icy “whale jail."
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Nearly 100 Captive Orcas and Belugas at Risk of Drowning, Freezing to Death | National Geographic
• Nearly 100 Captive Orc...
National Geographic
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As the investigation continues and severe cold persists, activists fear it will be too late for the animals if they are not released immediately. What are your thoughts on the fate of these animals?
Saddened that it's come to this but action must be taken. "Too late" shouldn't become an option or a reality.
If I was the one there filming I would probably put the camera down and dive to cut the nets
This is disgusting. The animals are in poor health because the people who have them held captive aren't taken care of their needs properly.
I prefer humans to die.
I hope they will get their freedom back, but if they don't.. It might be better for them to die before they will be a circus clown for decades.
it would be ashamed if these animals somehow was broken freed by a mystery group in the middle of the night (seriously, someone go do it)
Totally Agree!!!
And then some paranoids start to complain how vitriolic the group is ;(
Im not invading Russia sorry not unless i got some fancy gadgets or a very large army.
Someone provide the funding and I'll be the one to set them free.
rickiex why not you mr do it ?
This is just animal cruelty.
just russia kill animals and peoples
500+ likes and one comment! that's a first.
Tonianne Dacosta for the first time I agree that this is animal cruelty..
Kill humans kill humans but we don't know how we r all stuckbi this world of evil "humans" arent we all creatures? Arent we all caring n loving? Why treat us so terribly... We r God's creation love n all*all animals in captivity, abuse, poultry, stray, aboandoned, kept as pets illegally *
"They remain frozen in legal limbo." Let's think about that for a split second. These are WILD animals, not property. They are sitting here suffering, let them free!
We need to educate people on reasons we shouldn't support places that wrongfully house these animals for profit. If you are paying money to see these animals in tanks, you are a BIG part of the problem.
U don't get how the world works. Anything in international waters is for the taking. Granted the country that the boat flies had not been involved in some sort of agreement.
I would have to say wild wig
@@PapaTrump No...that's...that's not how it works at all...
Those poor creatures don't deserved that kind of cruelty and to be imprisoned in that cold place.
Hey cutey call me
This is so cruel, these whales need to be set free in order to survive. They need to swim freely in order to stay warm.
Or just heating the water would be fine
@@clarafamfanplayschartier yeah like that will happen...Oh wait..global warming
@b00ger901 Oh you just realized that now? Aka society today? I'm in my 20's. Where I'm from is still very tactile. It's all how you apply yourself. I love my life. Here, you go swimming in the sea and dolphins and whales swim with you. Bro we can take control of our life. These whales here can not. It's cruel. Free the Whales!!
@b00ger901 I totally get were your coming from.✌Why say they are lesser beings? We know very well who the lesser is huh.
You're stupid and illinformer.
This is BRUTAL - let them go free.
Don’t worry! They’re ready to set them free pretty soon
Good news guys! They were all removed from the “whale jail” and released in the Primorsky Region in November 2019. According to Russia’s Research Institute for Fisheries and Oceanography, many of them migrated along the coastline not long after release, where they seemed to be adapting to their natural habitat.
are they adapting to their Original Natural Habitat? or their New Natural Habitat? Just curious. Obviously I'm NOT a studier of Marine Life Biology.
I heard two didn’t make it Did Zoe make it?
Thank god
Nooooo Orcas will kil every beluga and other cetaceous, stoopid ppl
So these aren’t the same ones that ended up in marine parks in Japan and China?
Pure Evil in my Opinion no questions asked
I AGREE!!!!
They are mammals and they are warm blooded like us.
101yayo what’s your point?
Warm blooded animals can still die from freezing
@KZhead Customer Support sure they can have larger brains but that doesn't mean they're smarter.
@@CaptainSkinnySK empathy
Educated fool 😂
I'd like to see these poor animals released. Where's a scuba diving animal rights activist ewhen you really need one???
Because they can't show that on instagram and score popularity points. Actually good, but secretive, actions are not "hip" enough for animal rights activists.
jippalippa so true. Ocean Ramsey is a good example of an activist who only does it for the gram and $$. They are disgusting
you're quick to judge but all i see you do is comment about it on KZhead
Buy me a ticket and rent me some gear over there and I’ll do it...
I HAVE THE LOW YIELD EXPLOSIVES
This is the type of news that should be shared not about so called famous people or instagram models or anybody in social media... this is sad and hurtful and there should be a law where none of those animals can be captured
Thank you National Geographic for Sharing! SO important
What you mean?
@@petkotzvetkov6528 he means that they got exposed for what evil things they are doing for the world to see
@@Pepe-Le-Pew Yes indeed!!
So many people make fun of animal activists until they see the harm actually being done. It's okay to take a stand! Do not take your family to SeaWorld, do not "swim with the dolphins" during your vacation. If the welfare situation looks sketchy, ask questions! Spread the word!
Ellen Everitt pretty hard to not make fun of organizations like PETA
@@danielfadavi Look at Sea Shepherd, then. ✌💙😸
@@danielfadavi who said anything about Peta? There are tons of great organizations trying to help. Take the blinders off!
Amen sister!!!
Rebecca Funkenhauser Then who is the OP talking about? There aren't a bunch of people criticising the ligitimate animal welfare organizations.
Please keep us informed about this I'm praying these animals get released.
🙏Praying still..
Really.
@Lupita Gonzales Whales are fish
@@arsemcscratch6908 If you really think that is true, you might want to visit a doctor because something isnt fully working in your head. Just a heads up!
@@arsemcscratch6908 You're mom is a whale, but thats none of my business.
This is heart breaking, especially given how intelligent these animals are!
This is heart breaking. I feel as helpless as these poor creatures. It is my hope that since NatGeo posted this, they are doing everything they can to set these orcas and belugas free.
Is there anything we, the public, can do??
Yes, stop eating animals and stop supporting zoos. How about we start from there?
Great idea
Boycote any aquariums which contain cetaceans and start advocating to see these animals in the wild with a ecoturism guide.
spider love so you’re sensitive to captured animals but you dont mind the butchers killing other animals for you right? Why dont you go ahead and kill your own meat and see if you like killing innocent animal souls.
@@Sovereign_King humans have been eating meat for thousands of years that's not going to stop now
I hate humans sometimes !!! This is horrific 😱👿😭
coitinsforyourocky you have empathy and humility for saying that comment I appreciate that ! Wish more humans cared although 😥
Truth Seeker don’t just hate humans sometimes. Hate humans all the time.
Truth Seeker Are you a vegan?
Glad,I found a Bunch of psycho's all together hating for no reason!
Sometimes ? I'm not a vegan nor a vegetarian but this isn't quick death for food this is torture
Release them *they have feelings too ya know..*
Thank you National Geographic for sharing this!!!!! Thank you so much for informing the public of this horrendous criminal activity!!!
Why not just release them? This is torture. They aren't meant to stay in cold water like that.
Belugas and Orcas live in cold water, the Beluga whale's range extends from Alaska to Greenland, and from the Alaskan part of their range almost all the way to Iceland. Orcas are found anywhere from Australia to Antarctica. So yes, they are built for cold water but they still have migration patterns to warmer waters in the winter, and this is just plain cruel.
@@Patchwork_Dragon I would also like to add that when in cold waters these animals swim a lot of miles in order to keep warm in low temperatures
@@katerinatsantani6358 exactly they dont just sit there.
@@Patchwork_Dragon orca migrate up to subtopic waters in the winter
Cetaceans like these do have insulating blubber to stay warm but a big part of maintaining a stable body temperature is continuous movement to stimulate muscle tissue to generate heat more. These pens don’t provide the kind of space needed for that which is probably why the animals are succumbing to the cold
How dare people capture these beautiful wild animals just for human amusement. Set them free
How is it even legal to go catch these amazing animals? Why would you go out and take these animals away from their natural habitat so that people can make money from people going and seeing these animals in a tank? I think that the only animals that should be in a tank are the ones that need to be looked after and cared for. Not healthy animals that need to be put in the wild
To some people, it's all about the $$$. Pure and simple. Unfortunately, that is all too common in other places around the world. They don't view animals the same way we do.
@@Heart0fGold There are huge swathes of ancient forest in Siberia being chopped down in illegal logging operations. The Siberian Tiger is another species affected by human actions due to loss of habitat. I suspect that these Belugas and Orcas are being sold off, either for food or for rich people's pets. It's disgusting.
since it's been around 2 years now; It does make me wonder… were they removing them from their natural habitats because a (sort of) co-op was agreed upon between 🇨🇳&🇰🇵&🇷🇺 about the 🇰🇵 missile testing or is 🇨🇳 upto nuclear activity AGAIN? (remember that toxic leak so wide-spread it could be photo'ed from outer space🛰️‽) did 🇰🇵&🇨🇳 fore-see the 🇷🇺 Oil Spill happening? are ALL 3 removing the witnesses w/evidence on their bodies of pollutants from weapons tests which have been secretly¶ ruining the seas' over there? or ¶heavily contributing to "Global Warming"?
Shame on you Russia. Shame on you China.
Shame on you the rest of the world that does exactly same.. bunch of hypocrite wankers ;)
@@NG-zg8vf more countries are making captivity illegal. It's moving slowing but def moving
you're talking as if $eaWorld doesn't captives orcas, belugas, dolphins & other cetaceans! Wake up dude, they're everywhere
@Benjamin Sebastian Ferrero sea world
Dont shame china to load. They might stop making McDonald's toys for us. Then what are we going to do?
I CAN’T! 🤬😭😫😔 WHY DO HUMANS DO THIS?!! Then the “government” and “legalization” of HUMAN law gets in the way for animals, who have no way to have a say. I pray and hope these precious animals get released before it’s too late 😢
human law is for humans ChAnGe mY mINd
Angry men in power
@Javier Ruiz except those that seek Jehovah
Jake Rojas This is not a religious subject matter
@@aspergillusoryzae3722 it is. God created the seas and the creatures in them. He asks back all the life you've taken. And as creator he has that right.
Thank God For The Heroes Who Stepped In And Rescued These Amazing Animals 🤗
People are monsters! Those whales are so gentle and they’re so trusting it’s heart breaking
Orcas are very intelligent and recently I seen in the news that an orcas calf had died and the mother stayed with the dead calf for something like 17 days or so. So they have heart too. No animal deserves to be treated in such a way
I actually saw that too on the internet, i always knew they are smart and compassionate, but i did not expect to see a mother be so heartbroken to the point where it would stay with it's dead child for 17 days, almost starving itself to death in the process.
@@GabrielleduVent That is true, alot of the time you would mostly hear about captive Orcas killing humans, and barely, just barely a tiny % of them kill humans in the wild. They really smart and have alot more emotion then we do. Orcas are probably my favourite sea creature, next to dolphins and turtles. Did i mention whales XD... okay i just like them all.
Any sentient being should know those animals were not meant to be confined and forced to do tricks. My understanding of this situation is “The corrupt lawyer for the corrupt company that caught the animals ‘legally’ with permits from the corrupt government...blah, blah blah.” Rescuing wild animals that have been abandoned or injured etc. is one thing-If they are brought to a preserve where they have acres and acres to roam. I haven’t seen a preserve big enough for an Orca. Kudos to National Geographic and those responsible for bringing attention to this story.
Aquariums is just euphemism for food! These animals will probably be canned and fed to the 3.5 billion asians.
I'm just a normal person but I belive these animals belong in the wild so they can be free what gives us the right to play God we're just animals too its crazy how actual human law dictates the life of the animals
They where returned! Now we half to rescue the orcas and other aniamls at seaworld!!
I am generally pro aquarium, and believe that exhibiting some cetacean species (primarily smaller coastal species that reproduce well in captivity) for educational purposes is a good thing. But I think every human with a heart can see that this is an awful situation all around, and that the mass capture of threatened species for entertainment should be a thing of the past.
Similarly if another race captured humans but only kept specific types for educational purposes that would be a good thing?
Steve T you can’t compare humans to marine mammals. They most likely are completely unaware of free vs unfree
@@mypantsarefilledwithbeans6508 no they understand their captivity perfectly well
@@mypantsarefilledwithbeans6508 Most likely.... which makes it ok to capture wild animals and put them on display. I guess you've never seen an animal that has spent too much time in a cage..... they don't want to go back into it after they get free.
@@mypantsarefilledwithbeans6508 dolphins commit suicide in captivity. They hold their breath until suffocation.
I'd also love to see the owners and their family on the same pool while they are trying to wait for a court order for the animals to be released.
But why? These creatures need to move to warmer waters when it gets too cold. Shame on the captors. I hope justice prevails in the end. Thanks NG.
Moving them to warmer waters would be very stressful and possibly deadly. These are whales that are used to the cold waters of Russia and the Arctic.
It’s not necessarily the environment here that’s the issue it’s how restricted they are. Orcas and belugas do have insulating blubber to stay warm in arctic conditions but a big part of maintaining a stable body temperature is continuous movement to stimulate muscle tissue to generate heat more. These pens don’t provide the kind of space needed for that which is probably why the animals are succumbing to the cold
@@CleverClover2023 while that is true, they need to be release immediately. The water they are in is stagnant water. This means that the water doesn't move. Stagnant water freezes faster than moving water so if they can get out, they will def survive
This is so sad. Thank you for sharing. God bless our planet. 💙 🕊️ 🌎 ⚕️ 🌍 ⚕️ 🌏 🐬 💙
this is so sad. can we have an update? i am guessing they all died because they could not wait for court papers. this is so wrong...when an animal is in danger you should be able to act immediately
Oh those poor orcas and beluga whales
I would do anything to get them free and roam around the sea It hurts so such to realise how money made humans to rule over the animals though we all know the fact that we share this earth equally
Just do it.
Money made humans rule over animals??
@@phil9760 I will if I could
@@frusciante3499 in the sense everything we do involves huge amount of money
No you wont. The only thing you'll do is cry about it on the internet just like everyone else with every other problem. The people are weak now.
This deserves a lot of awareness
Absolutely took my breath away. The cruelty that is being done to these poor animals. God somebody do something.
I hope that whoever owns this cage may suffer the same fate as these animals🚶♂️🚶♀️🏔️❄️,🤬😠
They only do this because people like you and me go to zoos and aquariums and thats not going to stop neither will this
@@joser51o I agree with you, honestly I been to a zoo once (when I was six yrs old)as part of our school trip, for the so called learnings and understanding about animals😔
Triggered petaphile
Tbh
Think about the food you eat and how those animals suffer.
Thx a lot guys you had done something about it before filmed it.
This is beautiful and made my heart grow two times its size
My heart hurts for these gorgeous animals !! May the lord help them be free ASAP !
Looks like someone could just open the gate, out in that open water for them. Time for an Orca Jail break
so illegal crime is good now? animals rights = extremists
so crime is right now? PEACEFUL protest
HUMAN 4276 Honestly the law isn't always righteous. I wouldn't be disappointed if they illegally freed the orcas. The better, more secure method would be protest, but that takes time.
Sad part is they are better off there than a Chinese “aquarium”
They will end up stir fried in China
Lol your iq is funny
@@LabRat6619 lol from what source does it say that chinese people eat belugas and orcas?
They eat dogs and cats
@@kadenroinn7313 they eat everything.
Please keep us up to date on the situation 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
My heart just breaks for these amazing creatures
My heart!!😫
That is so cruel! Barbarians with permits?
Russians
Yeah it's kind of like the farmers who have permits to slaughter billions of animals every year so yoy can enjoy the taste of a burger. Just as barbaric.
@@morganfreeman5972 a domestic cow is not the same as an orca, beluga, whales, dolphins etc. Cows aren't on the very edge of becoming endangered or extinct. So shut up.
@@nesnonya3463 You're comment is really ignorant. A domestic cow has feelings and emotions just like all mammals. You're so conditioned to thinking of them as food that you forget they're sentient living beings.
Soo upsetting. I hope this video trends so some awareness/pressure can be brought to this kind of situations/companies.
These are sentient beings. They have culture, language, use tools, and show every sign of intelligent life. We have no right to enslave them.
Too cruel... Where's Aquaman when we need him?
This is so heartbreaking! 😭😭😭
Perfect example of GREED !!!!
Omg that’s incredibly sad. 😰😰😰
2:05 For now they are legally frozen in legal L I M B O?
Aren't humans just the best.
Mike Studmuffin sarcasm I think
Yeah
Please keep us updated National Geographic. Please. I really want to know that they will be saved.
Wow this is crazy I can’t believe this. My heart is devastated
These humans that do this are disgusting and should be caged
Half the people on here are saying it’s wrong probably go to sea world. This is the process that zoos and aquariums go through to get their animals if they aren’t captive bred. Keeping these animals locked up under these conditions is horrible but keeping an animal that swims miles every day inside a swimming pool isn’t great either. Humans are so confusing, we’re interested in nature and wildlife but too lazy to go out and experience it for ourselves so we recreate what already exists just to entertain ourselves. Even at the expense of the very animals we are so interested in.
Half the world isn't going to sea world daily. Stop straw-manning.
Very few people go to sea world anymore. Just the backwoods , inbred, hick moms who are nostalgic about sea world because their ignorant parents took them when they were kids. They can't admit that their fun childhood memories were sadistic in reality.
Fuckseaworld
Do you not realize how mainstream Blackfish is? They're not even allowed to get more orcas. Everyone commenting for the release of these animals is aware. You're not the only person who saw a famous netflix movie. Get over yourself.
So sad. I hope they are released soon. They just seem so sweet. 💕
These beautiful animals are more related to us mentally then any other animals on earth. World Help them please👑🔥👑 🙏
Ridiculous. If the people cared so much about education, they would start with themselves and understand those magnificent creatures deserve to be wild.. Free! Smh, I hope I don't hear that they've let them die. 🙏
Exactly!
Unbelievable
More people need to see this.
This breaks my heart..
Who is in charge of this and where do they live? (Asking for a friend)
And I don't understand the first question
@@WhirlwindandHeatburst basically, fishing companies are employed by these aquariums to capture them. When captured, the fishing companies will put them in the pents as see in the video. The aquariums will send people to pick the beautiful and pretty animals. The fishing companies will then forced the animals to adapt to a captive life by forced feeding and telling that they need to obey orders in order to get food etc.
@@WhirlwindandHeatburst once the animals are picked and they have "adapted" to following humans order, they will be shipped to the aquariums that bought them. Have you seen a dolphin show before? Did you see that the dolphins live in small pools behind the stage? This is where the animals will live until they die when in the aquariums. One pool can contain a few animals. When it is performance time, they will be released into the stage pool. They will then be chased into their pools when the performance is over. This keeps repeating until they die
Anonymous That sounds awful, but to tell you the truth I've seen a show before when I was younger at....you guessed it Seaworld. But knowing how bad that place truly is I will never see one again. I was just repeating the other guys question in a more understandable way.
@@WhirlwindandHeatburst no problem about that. I think I have a better understanding of your question
*NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*
I KNO UR ORCA FOOD BUT UR IN
Now this breaks my heart!
Im crying for these innocent lives.
This is just appalling and cruel to these magnificent animals. Stop handling them as commodity and start seeing them as life.
The words “caught” and “legally” don’t belong in the same sentence.
The cruelty that exists in this world is still so very shocking, smh.
Why??😢😢😢 I remember being so in love with those orca whales,beautiful creatures someone please help them
PETA do something !
PETA would kill these animals lol.
Manuraj Singh Chauhan, Brainwashed Petaphile Alert!
They are working on this plus Peta is not the only Animal rights org out there. We have dolphin project and sea shepherd
Anonymous, peta is hypocritical
@@clarafamfanplayschartier while thats true, they are only hypocritical in their shelters. Their animal shelters need a change in attitude and management. But for their animal rights field, they are doing very very well
This is just terrible and disgustingly cruel
But you eat meat so STFU
This breaks my heart 💔
And people wonder why aliens haven't visited us.
While the humans battled it out on the court, can't the animal at least being moved to other place more similar to their habitat? Don't know a thing about the animals, but if they're dying cause of severe cold, they clearly are not being put in their supposed habitat
The reason the whales are freezing is because they are stationary. Those pens are far to small to allow adequate movement to generate body heat.
Cetaceans like these do have insulating blubber to stay warm in arctic conditions but a big part of maintaining a stable body temperature is continuous movement to stimulate muscle tissue to generate heat more. These pens don’t provide the kind of space needed for that which is probably why the animals are succumbing to the cold
savage for human stupid amusement
They just all got released which is wonderful news for anyone looking for an update on this "whale jail" ^w^
NatGeo, make sure to make a similar video about SeaWorld so the entire world can see it.
Humans have no rights whatsoever to these animals or to any other animal they are their own being and belong with pod family out in the wild!
Well I know where I’ll never travel too,appalling animal cruelty 😡😡😡😡😡😡
Thats like not going too america cause some people abuse their pets.. the speed of govt. Is slow even in russia. Im sure there are people working to fix this. Just dont support the businesses that do this.
AJ G Well said ,I wld agree to thay👍🧚♂️
Wow ignorant
Pretty sure your country has animal abusers as well so 🤷🏼♀️
:( bless these helpless animals
"Beluga" whoa, that kid that is Kat?
Just 1 good diver....
Yet another reason why so many animals become endangered- ppl hunt them and to resolve it they just take the political route. Sometimes blowing the door down and breaking locks is the way it should be done
This is the worst of humanity. Only humans thinking they own everything they can get their hands on...even living creatures. My heart is breaking for them. I pray to God they survive and get away from that horrible place 🙏🙏🙏 Please God save them.
This is one of the saddest things i have EVER seen 😞😢
Just do what ever is needed to do to release them.. Waiting on pencil pushers will take too long.
Someone make a petition to make them let them out this is absolutely ridiculous they need to be free!!!!
those petitions never do anything. I've never once seen a petition free captive animals, have you? I wish it did, but it doesn't.
How about, go start WW3 with them?
It’s really sad how this world is. Nothing can be natural and free.
I gave the thumbs up like for this because the world needs the information and can hopefully save them but I feel for them so much it chokes me ! Human greed is the only savagery on Earth !!1
"Oh nooo"!!! 😧 free these beautiful whales into the wild, where they belong!!! & not held hostage!😡
*_Blackfish has joined the chat_*
This is heartbreaking 😢
Please keep us updated!