Freya (pronounced FRAY-ah) was an approximately 35-year-old female Icelandic killer whale who lived at Marineland Antibes. She was captured in October 1982 from Stokkseyri, Iceland at approximately 1 year old. Freya passed away due to hypovolemic shock caused by blood loss on June 20th, 2015 at Marineland Antibes.
Capture & Early Life[]
Freya was captured from Stokkseyri, Iceland in October 1982, along with Kim II, Nootka IV, Haida II, and an unnamed male. Following their captures, the five young whales were sent to the Hafnarfjordur Aquarium while they waited to be purchased by marine parks. Five months after their capture, Kim II and Freya were purchased by Marineland Antibes.
Life at Marineland Antibes[]
Upon their arrival, Kim and Freya met Betty, an 8 year old female. They got along well and performed together until Betty died of unknown causes in 1987.
Following Betty's death, Marineland was looking for more whales to join Freya and Kim. Due to changing laws, Marineland had to wait until 1990 to acquire any more orcas.
On January 12th, 1990, 4 year old female Sharkane and 6 year old male Tanouk joined Kim and Freya at Marineland. While Sharkane fit well into the social structure, there was tension between the two males, leading to Tanouk being kept in a back pool. This may have been due to the fact that Freya was pregnant at the time he arrived, and Kim was the bull male. In 1995, Tanouk was sold to Izu Mito Sea Paradise in Japan.
Freya had a tumor that was removed in 1995, however you could still see the circular scar on her left side.
Pregnancies[]
In 1991, Freya gave birth to a stillborn, sired by Kim II. Again in 1993, she gave birth to another stillborn.
On February 13th, 1996, Freya gave birth to a healthy male calf, who would later be named Valentin. The two were extremely close and would be seen together frequently until Freya's death. Valentin died only 4 months after his mother in 2015.
Though she gave birth to a healthy calf in 1996, Freya gave birth to two more stillborns in 2001 and 2003. Freya would go into a deep depression following each of her unsuccessful pregnancies, causing her being put on birth control.
Death[]
Freya died on June 20th, 2015 after a long battle with an undisclosed illness for which she had been undergoing treatment for. She was approximately 34 years old and left behind her only surviving calf, Valentin. Some sources claim she died from an alleged heart-attack, but her cause of death was not been made public until April 2024.[1] The document released by One Voice revealed that her cause of death was hypovolemic shock, likely due to extreme blood loss. There were several conditions that contributed to her death, including cardiomegaly, severe anemia, esophageal ulcers, and chronic pneumonia.[2]
Behavioral Incidents[]
- Sometime in the early 2000s, Freya "aggressively" pushed her trainer, John Hargrove, around for approximately 15 minutes.[3]
- On September 9th, 2008, Freya pushed a trainer through- and under the water, a behavior that was not asked of her (planned waterworks with the whales were frequent at that time).[4]
Transfer History[]
| FROM: | TO: | ON: |
|---|---|---|
| Stokkseyri, Iceland | Saedyrasafnid, Iceland | Oct. ??, 1982 |
| Saedyrasafnid, Iceland | Marineland Antibes, France | Mar. 06, 1983 |
Galleries[]
- Photos of Freya
- Videos of Freya
References[]
- ↑ 'Young Orca Dies in Captivity a few Months After His Mom Suffered a Similar Fate'
- ↑ Forensic report on orcas: 84 pages of platitudes despite malfunctions at Marineland
- ↑ John Hargrove, Beneath The Surface, Palgrave Macmillan, 2015, p.1-5
- ↑ 'Killer Whale attacks trainer'