Whale Question

[belle&sebastiansmom]

What's keeping the whales in captivity from jumping right over the sides of their tank?

I had one freaky dream about this last night.

I know a little about how zoos structure their enclosures to keep the animals where they want them, but what about aquariums?

 

[legalsea]

What's keeping the whales in captivity from jumping right over the sides of their tank?

I had one freaky dream about this last night.

I know a little about how zoos structure their enclosures to keep the animals where they want them, but what about aquariums?

I guess because whales are not stupid? Perhaps they sense that if they jump over the obstacle they will be on dry land? Or, maybe they have an agreement with their keepers not to Jump? And why do I keep asking putting my answers in question format?

 

[Jennasis]

Why would they? Whales don't generally jump onto dry land in the wild. They occassionally "beach" themselves to grab a seal but that is very different from jumping out over the wall of a tank.

 

[belle&sebastiansmom]

Why would they? Whales don't generally jump onto dry land in the wild. They occassionally "beach" themselves to grab a seal but that is very different from jumping out over the wall of a tank.

Fish jump out of small aquariums all the time and they don't beach themselves regularly either.

I'm not saying that the depressed, suicidal whale is going to purposely fling himself over the edge to end it all (though what's to put it past them, if they are as smart as the experts want us to believe). But I've been to two Seaworlds and have seen the shows. It's amazing how close to the edge of the tank these animals get during their routines. One miscalculation is all I'm saying. . .

 

[ZephyrHawk]

So, you're asking why they don't accidentally miss sometimes and fall out of their tanks? Well, for them it's much like walking. It's easy. And yes, I recognize that we trip over ourselves and fall down on occasion, but that's because we're dealing with gravity issues water based beings don't have to contend with so much.

 

[dolphinrescuegirl]

If you are talking about jumping gates between pools- dolphins and whales will not jump if they can't see where they will land. Even if the gates are see-through, they won't do it. Too scary and unpredictible.

 

[SunshineOR]

I don't know about whales, but I know Koi do this. My husband and I were shopping for koi fish at a pet shop once. The employee opened the tank and dipped the net in and the fish started darting away from it. A koi suddenly jumped out of the tank and was at our feet gasping. We were so shocked! Rest assured, the employee returned it and it seemed to be okay. Would be much more difficult to get a whale back in the aquarium, so glad they don't jump out of their aquariums.

 

[Diva of Dragons]

Dolphins, Pilot whales, Orcas etc.... use echo location. The know that there is a wall, barrier there. It's not part of their nature to jump over things, which is why dolphins get caught in certain types of nets. They can tell there something there, so cannot perceive that there is anything on the other side of the barrier.

 

[MizTink]

we were talking about this after the trainer was killed. DD11 wondered if a whale would/could ever do a "suicide jump" out of the tank. she said she won't sit up close anymore, now that she has thought of this!

 

[kirbsam]

whales can only jump straight up. they can not jump over things. ok, i just made that up. but it could be true.

 

[belle&sebastiansmom]

we were talking about this after the trainer was killed. DD11 wondered if a whale would/could ever do a "suicide jump" out of the tank. she said she won't sit up close anymore, now that she has thought of this!

The article in the current People quotes a whale expert as saying that whales have shown definite signs of depression and suicidal tendencies. Somewhere I heard that part of this was essentially holding their breath.

 

[terri01p]

 

[stashbin]