Haida II (pronounced hi-DAH) was an approximately 21-year-old female Icelandic killer whale who lived at SeaWorld San Antonio. She was captured in October 1982 from Stokkseyri, Iceland at approximately 2 years old. Haida passed away due to a brain abscess and associated infections on August 1st, 2001 at SeaWorld San Antonio. At the time of her death, Haida was pregnant with a 5 month old fetus.
Capture & Life at Sealand[]
In October 1982, Haida was captured from Stokkseyri, Iceland at approximately 2 years old. A few months later, she was purchased and flown to Sealand of the Pacific in British Columbia. On May 6th, 1983, Haida, along with another young female named Nootka IV, and an unnamed male, arrived at Sealand. They were brought in as replacements for Sealand's previous orca Haida, who had died the previous year. [1] Less than a month after arriving at Sealand, the unnamed male fell ill, and died on May 28th due to a rare blood disorder. [2] Another young Icelandic male who would later be named Tilikum was brought in to replace him on November 11th, 1984. [3]
At Sealand, Haida, Nootka, and Tilikum were deprived of food when they didn't perform or cooperate; they spent the nights in a "module". The module was a small, metal holding tank 26 feet in diameter, and 20 feet deep. The whales would spend up to 14 hours at a time in there. The three whales often fought, and Tilikum in particular was often subject to aggression from the two females. Both Haida and Nootka eventually fell pregnant to him. [4]
Death of Keltie Byrne[]
On February 20th, 1991, 21 year old Sealand part-time employee Keltie Lee Byrne was walking along the edge of the pool after a show, when, for reasons unknown, she fell into the pool at approximately 1:20 pm. She attempted to exit when one of the three whales in the pool at the time, either Nootka IV, Haida II, or Tilikum, grabbed her by the foot and pulled her back in, according to witnesses. For approximately ten minutes, all three whales batted Byrne around the tank, dragging her underwater. Sealand employees attempted to get Byrne out of the pool with a pole, life buoys, and nets, but were unsuccessful. They also attempted to distract the whales and cue them to still, which was also unsuccessful. Byrne was not able to be retrieved for another two hours, by which time Byrne was deceased. The coroner listed the cause of death as drowning due to forced submersion by killer whales. [5] [6]
After Byrne's death, new safety standards were imposed upon Sealand for continued killer whale keeping after an inquiry. However, Sealand put all three whales up for sale in September of 1991. [7]
Birth of Kyuquot[]
The aggression towards Tilikum grew worse as Haida's pregnancy progressed, and he was eventually driven into a small medical pool. He was kept there to prevent the aggression from escalating. [7]
On 11:30 am on December 24th, 1991, Haida went into labor. She gave birth to her first calf at 12:40 pm. Nootka and Tilikum were initially kept separated from the pair. About a month after birth, the calf was determined to be a male. [8] [9] Eventually, the calf was introduced to Nootka.
Move to and Life at SeaWorld[]
In November of 1991, two months after Sealand put all of their whales up for sale, SeaWorld applied for a display permit for all three whales. On January 8th, 1993, Haida and Kyuquot were moved to SeaWorld San Antonio.[10] When Haida arrived at SeaWorld, she was reportedly “untrained” in terms of husbandry and waterwork behaviors. After her incident at Sealand, SeaWorld staff monitored her and they observed no abnormal behaviors. They concluded that no special actions were needed to alter her training process. That same year, Haida mated with an orca named Kotar and conceived her second calf with him. She gave birth to a healthy female on November 20th, 1994. Although the calf initially behaved normally and healthily, her health began to decline in late December, exhibiting respiratory difficulties and not nursing. She was immediately given medical treatment, but she did not respond. The calf died on the afternoon of December 28th, 1994.
Throughout Haida’s years at SeaWorld, she continued to have a close bond with her son Kyuquot. She regularly performed in shows, but did not participate in waterworks with trainers due to her past. She got along well with the whales at the park and was the matriarch of the pod. Sometime in 2001, she was artificially insemenated with the sperm of Tilikum and concieved a male calf.
Death[]
On July 29th 2001, five months into her pregnancy, SeaWorld staff began to notice changes in Haida's behavior. She was placed under observation and given antibiotics. Despite treatments, Haida passed away the night of August 1st, 2001. [11] Her cause of death was due to a brain abscess.
Galleries[]
- Photos of Haida II
- Videos of Haida II
Transfer History[]
| FROM: | TO: | ON: |
|---|---|---|
| Stokkseyri, Iceland | Saedyrasafnid, Iceland | Oct. ??, 1982 |
| Saedyrasafnid, Iceland | Sealand of the Pacific, Canada | May 06, 1983 |
| Sealand of the Pacific, Canada | SeaWorld San Antonio, Texas | Jan. 08, 1993 |
References[]
- ↑ 'Sealand Gets 3 Iceland Whales'
- ↑ 'Sealand Whale Dies From Rare Blood Disorder'
- ↑ 'Sealand Adds a Male Whale'
- ↑ 'Dangers to Trainers'
- ↑ 'Keltie Byrne Coroner's Inquest'
- ↑ 'Playing Whales Kill Trainer Before Shocked Crowd'
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 'The Tilikum Transaction'
- ↑ 'Orca's Christmas Birth Surprises Aquarium Staff'
- ↑ 'Sealand's Month-Old Killer Whale Identified as Male'
- ↑ https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59733820/jan-8-1993-nootka-arrives-in/
- ↑ 'Biologists at Park Baffled by Whale's Death'