Marineland of New Zealand was a

marine mammal park A marine mammal park (also known as marine animal park and sometimes oceanarium) is a commercial theme park or aquarium where marine mammals such as dolphins, beluga whales and sea lions are kept within water tanks and displayed to the public in ...

in Napier, New Zealand. The park opened in 1965 and closed to the public in 2008. During the time it was open, Marineland housed several species of native and introduced marine wildlife, most notably including the

common dolphin The common dolphin (''Delphinus delphis'') is the most abundant cetacean in the world, with a global population of about six million. Despite this fact and its vernacular name, the common dolphin is not thought of as the archetypal dolphin, with ...

History

1960s

The history of Marineland began in 1964 when an Auckland architectural firm was commissioned by Napier City under mayor

Peter Tait Peter Tait may refer to: * Peter Tait (physicist) (1831–1901), Scottish mathematical physicist * Peter Tait (footballer) (1936–1990), English professional footballer * Peter Tait (mayor) (1915–1996), New Zealand politician * Peter Tait (radio ...

to design an aquarium and dolphin pool. In late January 1965 Marineland caught its first

, Daphne, and the facility opened two days later. In 1969, two dolphins died when vandals broke in and fed them nails. By the end of the 1960s the site had exhibited dusky dolphins,

California sea lion The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of C ...

leopard seal The leopard seal (''Hydrurga leptonyx''), also referred to as the sea leopard, is the second largest species of seal in the Antarctic (after the southern elephant seal). Its only natural predator is the orca. It feeds on a wide range of prey incl ...

s and

New Zealand fur seal ''Arctocephalus forsteri'' (common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New Z ...

s. In the 1970s, Marineland welcomed

bottlenose dolphin Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the common ...

weddell seal The Weddell seal (''Leptonychotes weddellii'') is a relatively large and abundant true seal with a circumpolar distribution surrounding Antarctica. The Weddell seal was discovered and named in the 1820s during expeditions led by British sealing ...

s, and small clawed

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes wea ...

s arrived from

Melbourne Zoo Melbourne Zoo is a zoo in Melbourne, Australia. It is located within Royal Park in Parkville, approximately north of the centre of Melbourne. It is the primary zoo serving Melbourne. The zoo contains more than 320 animal species from Austra ...

. In the 1980s and 1990s, significant development occurred at Marineland with the construction of a grandstand and a new Marine Education Centre with funding from

New Zealand Lotteries Commission The New Zealand Lotteries Commission, trading as Lotto New Zealand since 2013, is a Crown entity that operates nationwide lotteries in New Zealand. It was established in 1987 and operates under the Gambling Act 2003. Its oldest and most popular ...

grant In 1992, a very popular "Swim With Dolphins" programme was established. Marineland closed to the public in September 2008 when Kelly, the last remaining dolphin, died. Many of the animals and staff were transferred to

National Aquarium of New Zealand The National Aquarium of New Zealand, formerly Napier Aquarium, is a public aquarium on Marine Parade in Napier, New Zealand. It was started in 1957 and moved to its present location in 1976. It is owned by Napier City Council. In addition to ma ...

, also in Napier. In September 2013, Napier City Council announced that Marineland was to be demolished and replaced with a skatepark, known as Bay Skate.

Notable animals

Marineland was notable for housing

common dolphins The common dolphin (''Delphinus delphis'') is the most abundant cetacean in the world, with a global population of about six million. Despite this fact and its vernacular name, the common dolphin is not thought of as the archetypal dolphin, with ...

, which are rarer than the

in captivity. The last two dolphins kept by Marineland, Kelly and Shona, arrived in 1974. Shona died in 2006 and Kelly died on 11 September 2008, possibly due to stomach cancer. Her death triggered the closure of Marineland to the public. In addition to the dolphins, Marineland also housed

New Zealand fur seals ''Arctocephalus forsteri'' ( common names include the Australasian fur seal, South Australian fur seal, New Zealand fur seal, Antipodean fur seal, or long-nosed fur seal) is a species of fur seal found mainly around southern Australia and New ...

California sea lions The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of Califo ...

, and a

. Many of the animals kept at Marineland were either brought in sick or injured, or were bred from animals that were brought to the park sick and injured. Other animals were also acquired from other zoos, including

Sea Life Park Sea Life Park Hawaii is a marine mammal park, bird sanctuary and aquarium in Waimānalo near Makapuʻu Point, north of Hanauma Bay on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, United States. The park first opened in 1964, and includes exhibits that let visit ...

in Hawaii. Marineland was also home to a breeding colony of

little penguins The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is a species of penguin from New Zealand. They are commonly known as little blue penguins or blue penguins owing to their slate-blue plumage and are also known by their Māori name . The Australian lit ...

established from sick and injured birds, which were moved to the National Aquarium in Napier. A wide range of birds were also kept at Marineland over the years, including Australasian gannets and a

sulphur crested cockatoo The sulphur-crested cockatoo (''Cacatua galerita'') is a relatively large white cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia, New Guinea, and some of the islands of Indonesia. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being ...

known as Bobby.

Legal issues with manager

The final manager of Napier's Marineland, Gary Macdonald, resigned on 18 November 2009 after 32 years at Marineland after investigations found he falsified documentation to keep wild animals illegally. "What I did was totally wrong & I should've been informing DOC of exactly what I was doing," said Mr Macdonald in live statements after the investigation. Investigations into the council-owned tourist attraction were started by The Department of Conservation about the false paperwork on 11 November 2009. Napier City Council chief executive of the time Neil Taylor explained the investigations showed three or more wild seal pups were documented as being born in Marineland, enabling the facility to keep them rather than release the animals back to the wild. The council probe revealed false declarations were filed in 1996, 2006, and 2007, stating in all cases that the pups had arrived malnourished, harassed, or at risk for treatment. DOC completed an investigation but decided against prosecution of Marineland, satisfied with Mr Macdonald's resignation.

References

External links

*http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/questions-over-marineland-s-fur-seals-3135570/video *http://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503462&objectid=10989122 {{Zoos of New Zealand Aquaria in New Zealand Oceanaria Buildings and structures in Napier, New Zealand Tourist attractions in the Hawke's Bay Region 1965 establishments in New Zealand 2008 disestablishments in New Zealand 1960s architecture in New Zealand