Young children get a close-up view of an orca killer whale during a visit to SeaWorld in San Diego, Calif., on Wednesday. As the marine-animal-themed park celebrates its 50th birthday on Friday, SeaWorld is continuing to face public pressure to end the captivity of its killer whales.
A bill introduced in California earlier this month by state Assemblyman Richard Bloom would require the park to end its killer whale live performances and ban captive breeding and the imports and exports of orcas in California.
Pressures have been mounting on SeaWorld for months following the release of the 2013 documentary Blackfish, which documents the death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010 by Tilikum, a 12,000-pound killer whale previously linked to two other deaths.
