By Dr. Pam Yochem
As a wildlife veterinarian and marine biologist at the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, I have spent the last 35 years of my life caring for and conducting research with animals ranging from a one–ounce sea bass to an 8,000-pound adult killer whale. I have been extremely fortunate to have experienced firsthand the positive impact and benefit of research studies with some of the world’s most amazing animals.
That is why I’m so excited about SeaWorld San Diego’s Blue World Project. This project, which will expand and enhance the habitat for the park’s killer whales, not only demonstrates SeaWorld’s ongoing commitment to the well-being of the whales in its care, but also to the conservation of wild marine mammals.
SeaWorld is one of finest zoological facilities in the world, and has long provided the opportunity for scientific studies that cannot be conducted in the wild. The park’s planned expansion will allow researchers to further address globally significant conservation questions, and advance the training of the next generation of marine scientists and veterinarians.
Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute and many other research institutions have been conducting scientific studies at SeaWorld for nearly 50 years. From hearing and vocalization studies to research on metabolic rates and reproductive physiology, scientists have gained extraordinary knowledge regarding the biology and health of marine animals and their role in the ecosystem.
Killer whale studies currently under way at SeaWorld and those that will take place in the future because of Blue World, have and will continue to benefit killer whales in the wild. Marine mammals, including killer whales, face increasing threats in our oceans, including disruptive noise resulting from human activities. Hearing data collected since the 1970s by scientists on a variety of marine mammals at SeaWorld and other zoological parks were used to help set the first science-based guidelines for protecting marine mammals from noise.
The “gold standard” of hearing tests is the behavioral audiogram, and this cannot be done with untrained animals. Knowledge of killer whale hearing, resulting from studies at SeaWorld, was used by Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute to suggest a mitigation strategy to prevent harmful fisheries interactions at sea. By knowing which sounds produced by fishing vessels were audible to killer whales, engineering solutions to dampen these sounds could be developed, thereby decreasing the “dinner bell” effect of alerting whales to the presence of fish on the line.
Since the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute was founded in 1963, our mission has always been “to return to the sea some measure of the benefits derived from it.” That charter is never more evident than during the research we do at SeaWorld to advance conservation of marine wildlife worldwide. Being able to conduct research on healthy killer whales and other marine mammals in a safe and controlled environment like SeaWorld has allowed us to, for example, seek ways to prevent harmful interactions between marine mammals and human activities, discover the best techniques for cleaning and caring for oiled animals, and develop and test new instruments and techniques for field research and conservation.
I’m proud of the work I and my fellow researchers have done over the past several decades to learn about and help marine animals, and I am equally honored to serve on the Blue World Project’s advisory panel alongside distinguished scientists, veterinarians and conservationists. It’s a privilege to help SeaWorld achieve its dual mission of continuing to enhance the lives of the killer whales in its care, while expanding the knowledge and understanding of killer whales and other marine life through future research.
