Argumentative Essay on the Pros and Cons of Dolphins...

Argumentative Essay on the Pros and Cons of Dolphins Living in Captivity versus the Pros and Cons of Dolphins Living in the Wild. The Common Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) are probably the most popular species of dolphins around. Coming under the order of Cetecea and the family of Delphinidae, the bottlenose dolphins are closely related to whales and are highly intelligent creatures (source 7). They are widely distributed around the world in the deep tropical and sub-tropical seas as well as other warm regions. For this reason, there is no recorded global estimate of the number of Bottlenose Dolphins in this world. According to source 9, it is regarded as a common cetacean, and too large and strong to be captured by accident.†¦show more content†¦Captured animal’s natural hunting and survival instincts grow dull after living the lax life in a tank. Upon being released back into the wild, they are unable to fend for themselves and are quickly hunted by predators. Also, experience has proven that the spectators of educational animal shows come away with little thought for the welfare of the animals and more for other exciting things like fun rides, etc. Spectators mostly go to shows not for the education but for the entertainment of watching different and sometimes â€Å"weird† animals perform. Besides, many do not consider the mental distress that plagues the dolphins that are suddenly brought into captivity to be studied. Again referring to source 1 and 6, the animals may most likely not be able to adept well and this may increase their aggression towards their tank-mates as well as show other signs of obvious mental suffering. What’s more, it is obviously not easy to care for these animals, not to mention costly. Safaris and parks fork out billions a year for the maintenance and care of their animals. Looking at SeaWorld’s impressive facilities as an example, imagine the cost for designing, building and then maintaining the aquariums, plumbing, dietary needs, etc of the animals. And even then, it is no match for Mother Nature. Also, the ethi cal side of dealing with all living things dictates that it is immoral to interfere with the lives of the dolphins. We violate