Orcas Stella and Ran Need Your Voice!

4/23/25

Serious issues exist at Kobe Suma Sea World in Japan involving Stella and Ran, the two orcas confined at the park in a small tank.

Not only are the orcas forced to perform stupid tricks involving trainers standing on their backs for a "ride," but the animals are demonstrating concerning behaviors that put their lives in danger.

Stella and Ran were transferred to Kobe Suma from another Japanese Sea World (no relation to the U.S.-based SeaWorld) in April 2024. When two additional orcas were in danger of being sent there late last year, noted orca expert Ingrid Visser wrote an extensive report on the Kobe Suma facility. She notes: significant issues with the orcas' teeth, stereotypic behaviors that indicate chronic stress, and instances of aggression amongst the many concerns.

Direct in-water contact with trainers puts both orca and trainer lives at risk.Additionally, the facility itself is deeply problematic without adequate shade or space for natural orca behavior. In short, Visser determined that Kobe Suma Sea World was no place for orcas.

Its time for marine mammal captivity to be a thing of the past!

In a previous email we asked you to contact the newly opened Kobe Suma Sea World Hotel, which has an inadequate dolphin pool. With no effort being made by the facility to change their ways, we are now asking you to email Mayor Hisamoto of Kobe to encourage him to intervene! 

Click here to quickly and easily take action. You may change the message if you like; however the existing message does contain a Japanese translation.