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SeaWorld's End To Killer Whale Captive Breeding Gains Analyst's Approval

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An analyst who’s been keeping an eye on SeaWorld says its decision to end captive breeding of killer whales is the right one.

Barton Crockett is a SeaWorld analyst for FBR.  He says the company is evolving into one known for aquatic theme parks rather than killer whales.

"Being intertwined with orcas has become problematic, and I think this announcement moves away from that," he says. "You're doing everything you decently can do to move away from that. The only thing they're not doing is taking the orcas physically out of the parks and moving them somewhere, but you couldn't really do that humanely."

SeaWorld's decision means this generation of killer whales is its last. The company also says it will discontinue theatrical shows featuring the animals.

Amy Green covered the environment for WMFE until 2023. Her work included the 2020 podcast DRAINED.