#tokitae lolita

[sharktopia]

This month’s featured “patron in the spotlight” is Peggy Oki - infamous skateboarder, surfer, artist, activist, and so much more!

This spotlight post is available for everyone to view (no sign-in or subscription required) and includes two free downloads featuring my art with quotes by Peggy. We hope they inspire you to speak up for Tokitae (Lolita)!

Special thanks again to Peggy for diving in with me! 💙💙💙

Direct link: https://www.patreon.com/posts/patron-in-peggy-70547147

[blackandwhiteproductions]

Lolita has officially passed away, condolences to her true trainers and the people who truly knew her

[heckyeahponyscans]

Tokitae is dead.

I wonder if Miami Seaquarium knew she was declining and obfuscated it. If she died after getting transferred to a sea pen then they could blame the journey across the country, or the sea pen, for her death.

Tokitae's mother, Ocean Sun (age 95), survives her and still swims free in the Salish Sea.

[queenhelenblackthorn]

I know a lot of harrowing things have happened this past week alone but this news is my last straw.

we have had record breaking heat all summer and they had her swimming in circles in a glorified shallow pond by herself with no shade. our coast water temperature reached 101 degrees, I cannot imagine how hot that tank water was for her. she was taken from her mother when she was a young calf and sold to Miami Seaquarium and lived in that tank since 1970 and hasn't been in the company of another orca since 1980.

RIP Lolita, you deserved better.

[orcinus-veterinarius]

Just so you’re all aware, news stations have posted aerial drone footage of Tokitae’s deceased body (covered by a white sheet) on social media. This is, of course, abhorrently disrespectful to Toki, her veterinarians, and care staff. Please use caution when watching news reports if seeing this would upset you.

[weirdunicorn]

I am so heartbroken and angry right now…Tokitae, aka Lolita or Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut, the orca at the Miami Seaquarium has died at 57 years old. As a four year old in 1970 she was VIOLENTLY captured from her pod in Puget Sound, for our entertainment. She was the last surviving orca captured in the Salish Sea, after 53 years in captivity, in what equated to a fish bowl. She lived her life in a tank that if it was you, would be like living in a bathtub. She was going home to her pod, plans were well underway to have her go to a sanctuary where she could at least see her family…her mother Ocean Sun or L25 is still alive! She's 95 years old and still kicking. Years ago someone played the L pod songs to Toki and she recognized them and went into a frenzy…she would have still recognized her mother and vice versa. But now she'll never have the chance…she was so close! My only hope for her now is that they do the right thing and send her body to the Lhaq’temish (Lummi) people of her home turf so that they can put her to rest the right way. She deserves at least that much. My heart hasn't hurt like this since Tilikum passed away, and sure, some people will say get over it, it's just an animal but no, it feels like I've lost a loved one.

[endkillerwhalecaptivity]

Tokitae's ashes were returned home to Washington on Wednesday, according to the Lummi Nation.

They will spread her ashes in a private traditional water ceremony. A public celebration will be announced at a later date

[orcinus-ocean]

Chapter 7 is uploaded out of order since it was originally written years ago and it has taken me very long to find data on the Northern residents from the last several years, preventing me from making fair lifespan calculations and finishing this chapter.

Since I originally wrote the script in 2015 and rewrote parts for the audio recording in 2017, I highly recommend that anyone interested visits my website, which can be much more easily edited and updated with new information, or have incorrect information altered.

And especially when it comes to "tedious data" like lifespan calculations, I can go much more in-depth in the article: https://okeano.wixsite.com/orchive/lifespan

[believeyourstory]

Swim in paradise forever sweet pea. I’ll always remember you for your resilience no matter how difficult life may seem, you handled it with grace you gentle giant.

[sitonmyfacelikeagoodgirl2023]

#

[sugargrim3]

In the next, better life.

I'm sorry we failed you Tokitae, you're with Hugo now at least

[naturesmomentsphotography]

As much as her passing hurts, I believe she's back home. We can't see her, she's not physically there but I believe her spirit is finally home where she belongs with her family and swimming free. She's finally home, just not in a way we wanted, but she's free and her spirit and legacy will live on.

Edit made of Toki and her mother L25 Ocean Sun who is still alive and swimming free in the ocean

[heckyeahponyscans]

With the Tokitae aka Lolita in the news so much, I'd like to take a minute to remember a different orca: Hugo.

He was caught in Puget Sound, Washington, and sold to Miami Seaquarium. As small as Tokitae's tank is now, Hugo was initially in an even smaller one. After Tokitae was sold to Seaquarium both orcas were moved to a slightly larger tank, the one Tokitae swims in today. Upon purchasing her, Miami Seaquarium changed Tokitae's name to Lolita, after the heroine in the famous novel. You know--the novel where the middle-aged narrator lusts after a twelve year old. Because Tokitae was so much smaller / younger than Hugo and the theme park wanted them to mate--get it?? Yikes.

Anyway. Hugo repeatedly banged his head against the side of his tank. At one point he cracked the viewing wall and nearly severed his rostrum (the tip of his nose), which had to be surgically reattached. In 1980 he died of a brain aneurysm. The image above shows his lifeless body being lifted out of his tank. Miami Seaquarium dumped him at the city landfill.

You won't find any memorials to Hugo at the Seaquarium; they would prefer that you forget him. But I haven't forgotten you, Hugo. Unhappy soul trying to reach the sea.

[saltycetaceans]

The difference between Tokitae and Corky, when it comes to moving them to Sea Pens is that: Corky II lives with other killer whales, she lives with whales that have become her pod, she has become a prominent foster mother to a lot of calves, a lot of who she still lives with.

Tokitae wasn't with another orca for well over 40 years, she was the only one at the Miami Seaquarium, minus a few lags she lived with, which is much different than 7 other killer whales whom an orca has bonds with that stem from decades of interaction and care for one another.

[orcinus-veterinarius]

"Marine scientists have also raised concerns that Lolita, who has had multiple health scares in the decades in her tank, won’t be well enough to survive the diseases and pollution in the ocean, but [Pitram] Singh said he’s confident that she will survive." (x)

This is who's spearheading Tokitae's release: Pitram Singh, co-fouder of the animal rights group Friends of Lolita. He isn't a veterinarian, marine biologist, animal trainer, or even a custodian at the Seaquarium. He's a Florida Keys real estate tycoon. And he thinks he knows more about her health and wellbeing than the actual experts warning that this is a bad idea. The other so-called philanthropist funding this operation is Jim Irsay, CEO of the Indianapolis Colts. That's right, the NFL football team.

The icing on the cake is this statement from the CEO of the Dolphin Company, Eduardo Albor (a businessman, not an animal care professional):

"He [Albor] told media gathered for the announcement about his first visit to the Seaquarium before his company purchased the theme park. He and his daughter caught the Lolita show, and he described a cheering, happy crowd of families delighting in the orca’s performance, including himself. Then, he said, his daughter told him she couldn’t watch the show anymore and needed to leave. “I cannot be here because this place is too small for Lolita,” she told him. “Dad, I have to go or I will cry.” Albor said he vowed that if he took over the park, he would do what he could to free Lolita. “I promised,” he said."

Sir, you own a swim-with-the-dolphins company, and yet you're buying activist rhetoric hook, line, and sinker. You should have promised your daughter you would do what was best for Toki. You should have listened to the animal care experts who literally work for you instead of giving in to the same people who want to see you out of business

[local-hellhound-steals-spaghetti]

Yes Mark Simmons go off 👏

It really is ridiculous that they were trying to introduce a stretcher to a novelty-averse 50+ year old orca who was still on antibiotics.

The “care team” that was Friends of Toki were not zoological professionals. In fact most of them didn’t have a single day of experience working with orcas or developing behaviour plans.

The vets were independent and had experience but they were likely feeling pressure by the constant media releases of how they were going to transport Toki by the end of the year.

Toki was old. I don’t think there’s conspiracy about her death. But I do think that the way she was talked about as a “symbol” for the anti cap movement was not putting her best interests at heart.

These people want whales to experiment their sea sanctuary idea with and have a “win”. Just like they did with Keiko and Naomi Rose said quote “he wasn’t the best candidate but he was the only candidate.”

They knew Keiko had chronic heath issues of recurring pneumonia but they had gotten up enough public momentum that they could pull it off. So they did. And that orca suffered a very sad end of deprivation and stress before those health issues caught up to him.

Mark Simmons knows this better than most people because he was one of the people who had to walk out of the Keiko project because the higher ups insisted on forcing him into paths of wild orca even though he showed significant stress responses.

The zoological industry has a lot to be accountable for as well. It has a lot of work to do to make sure what happened to Toki never happens again. Especially accrediting organisations that have STILL allowed MSQ to keep their accreditation after they were caught starving their dolphins.

Toki deserved better. And I’m sad that she lost her trainers of 20+ years because they couldn’t work at MSQ anymore with the Dolphin Company’s disgraceful conduct.

So she probably didn’t even get to die with the people she knew and loved the most. Even though I’m sure her current trainers adored her and gave her the best passing they could.

Everything about this is exhausting and frustrating and quite frankly makes me glad I’m no longer a part of this industry. I’m so tired.