The tragic story of Keto, the ‘frustrated’ killer whale that spent its life in a tank
Keto, a 29-year-old killer whale, called a chlorinated pool at a Spanish marine park home for nearly two decades.
The 6,600-pound orca had entertained generations with sky-high leaps and belly flops that splashed crowds at Loro Parque, Tenerife.
But the dolphinarium on the outskirts of Puerto de la Cruz confirmed on Friday that Keto had died after days of ‘showing signs of discomfort’.
His cause of death has not yet been determined, with a team of 21 vets having conducted an autopsy over the weekend.
‘He served for years as an extraordinary ambassador of his species, captivating everyone with his commanding presence and unique personality,’ the site said.
‘For the Loro Parque family, Keto was not just an ambassador of his kind but an irreplaceable being who left an indelible mark on our hearts. His memory will live on in those who were fortunate to know him and in all those who, thanks to him, learned to admire orcas.’
But to animal rights campaigners, Keto was anything but an ‘ambassador’. His life, as The Whale Sanctuary Project once put it, was one of ‘frustration, violence and boredom’.
Killer whales, a species of dolphin, have been held in captivity around the world since at least 1961. Keto was once one of about 54 in captivity in marine parks worldwide.
His father, Kotar, was captured in Iceland in 1978. He died before his son was born when a metal gate came down and crushed his skull.
Keto was born at SeaWorld Orlando in 1995 as part of the park’s controversial breeding programme before being torn away from his mother, Kalina, when he was four. His older brother, Keet, remains in a tank in SeaWorld.
After jumping around various SeaWorld attractions, he was moved some 4,000 miles away to Loro Parcque in 2006 to breed.
Keto was bred with his niece, Kohana, according to PETA. His daughter, Vicky, died when she was ten months old. Just one of Keto’s three calves, Adán, is still alive and is a regular in Loro Parque’s shows.
‘Over the years, Loro Parque has presented Keto to the audience as an ambassador of his species even though he has never seen the ocean or experienced anything that is natural to an orca,’ said the Dolphin Project, a welfare campaign group.
‘He never even saw a real ocean wave and could only swim a few feet before a wall stopped him.’
Animal rights activists have documented the deep toll captivity took on the mammoth dolphin, such as chewing on the Metflex, a waterproof concrete that lines tanks, not unlike a ‘bored kid picking a loose pain’.
The stress from living outside his natural environment turned Keto violent, they add.
In 2009, Keto fatally wounded one of his trainers, Alexis Martinez. The killer whale dragged Alexis underwater, fracturing his bones and causing organ damage.
According to SeaWorld: ‘After Keto’s initial attack on Martinez, the trainer never surfaced again, meaning that the orca’s attack must have been swift and devastating.
‘The report confirms that after just 40 seconds into the incident – Alexis appeared “motionless on Keto’s rostrum”.’
Keto is the fourth killer whale to die at Loro Parcque following Ula, Kohana, and Skyla in recent years.
Loro Parque has long denied the claims of animal rights campaigners about the conditions Keto lived in.
‘Rest in peace, dear Keto. We will always remember you with the greatest love and gratitude,’ the dolphinarium added.
Orcas are the largest members of the dolphin family. Found swimming throughout the world’s oceans, chinook salmon are typically on the menu for them.
They stick with their birth families their entire lives, with males living to around 30 and females up to 90. Captive killer whales tend to live to around 41.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.