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There is urgency at Marineland Park in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes), closed since January 2025. Two orcas and a dozen dolphins are still at risk there. This Friday, May 15, the Minister of Ecological Transition visited the park. The decision seems final: the cetaceans will be transferred to other parks in Spain.
After months of uncertainty, it’s the end of a long saga for the two orcas. They were filmed on Friday, May 15, apparently in good health. In a few weeks, they will leave Marineland Park in Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes), permanently closed for over a year.
Due to degraded and cracked tanks, their safety is at risk. The government is facing an urgent situation. The green light has been given for a transfer to Spain. “I remind you that there have already been two orcas that died in this park a few years ago. If we do nothing, we condemn them to a certain death,” said Mathieu Lefève, the Minister of Ecological Transition.
The orcas will be airlifted to another water park in Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. A team from French television visited the site. The shows with the cetaceans are still allowed there, the best option according to Marineland Park in Antibes. “This will allow them to join an already existing social group with four orcas, which will make a total of six orcas, forming a necessary social group for the well-being of the animals,” explains Valentin Ducros, the spokesperson for Marineland.
As for the 12 dolphins from the French park, they will be temporarily transferred to Spain, to two other parks. Eight of them will end up at the Beauval Zoo (Loir-et-Cher). Finally, a solution has been found. Opened in 1970, the park has seen successful years. Tricks, acrobatics… The dolphins and orcas, undeniable stars, attract up to 10,000 visitors per day.
For many in Antibes, a nostalgic chapter is ending. “It was a unique opportunity for children to see this. It was fabulous,” said a woman. “You would go at least once a year, it was the least you could do. You would bring family with children, you would take them. It was a magnificent spectacle,” added a man. “It remains good memories, but when you are little, you don’t realize things. It’s not a life for them… Circus beasts,” nuanced a third person.
With the growing awareness of animal welfare, attendance is decreasing. As a sign of changing times, a law in France will ban shows involving cetaceans from 2026. A few months ago, shocking images surfaced: two orcas, seemingly alone in the world. Animal welfare organizations have constantly criticized their situation. Their transfer to the Canaries is far from satisfying them. “Sending these animals to another park, especially in Spain, where the conditions of detention are even worse than at Marineland in Antibes, is simply shameful,” criticized Aurore Defix, spokesperson for the association “One Voice.”
The transfer of the orcas is scheduled to take place before the end of June, and is expected to cost several hundred thousand euros.
