A plan to import 18 beluga whales from Russia to U.S. aquariums including SeaWorld San Diego has sparked conflict between proponents, who said the transfer would promote conservation, and critics, who said it would fuel an international market for the species.
Although the United States’ Marine Mammal Protection Act bans the capture or import of animals such as whales and dolphins, it grants an exemption for species placed on public display.
The whales — 10 females and eight males from 3½ to 11½ years old — were caught in the eastern Russian Sea of Okhotsk between 2006 and last year. They are now held in facilities on the Black Sea.
If transferred to the United States, they would be housed at the aquarium in Atlanta; SeaWorld parks in San Diego, Texas and Florida; and the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.
Critics said marine parks in the U.S. have not imported wild-captured belugas in 20 years and should not return to that practice now. Getting the whales from Russia would feed a lucrative international market for marine mammals that American facilities should discourage instead of support.
More than 7,000 people have weighed in, many of them imploring the agency to deny the transfer permit.
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