In this handout photo provided by SeaWorld San Diego, actor and comedian David Koechner spent a day with his family at SeaWorld San Diego where he met Malibu, a 17-year old female bottlenose dolphin A (Photo : Getty Images/Handout)
SeaWorld has announced that they will be replacing the killer whale show Shamu in their San Diego branch last Nov. 9. As a replacement, new attractions will feature more natural settings.
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. CEO Joel Manby said that their current orca experience features killer whales performing tricks, but will only last until 2016. Now the company is planning on having new attractions for their San Diego facility.
The issue was brought up by visitors, who highlighted the natural behaviors, habitats, and environments of the species. SeaWorld countered through Manby telling Reuters, "They jump into the wild, they splash in the wild."
It is said that the new attractions will not only push the issues away, but give their daily visitors and guests something new to learn. In another post from SeaWorld Cares, Manby said "The main point is we are listening to our guests."
The SeaWorld CEO even added that there will be new changes to signal their company's new era of evolution. He even confirmed that the "One Ocean" theatrical show of killer whales will take its final bow in 2016.
SeaWorld even announced that they designed their attractions to be more persistent in displaying animals and make it more appealing to the public. With regards to the plans of also modifying the SeaWorld parks in Florida and Texas, no news has been confirmed yet.
Investors, however, are expressing that this change will not affect the business, financially speaking.
Animal rights groups, have been in the works of ending the public display of animals and the use of killer whales. Replacing Shamu was a decision made following years of criticisms about captive animals.
