Marineland of New Zealand, Napier (Closed) last dolphin at Marineland dies

Chlidonias · 21 Dec 2011

the intended bulldozing of Marineland reported in March (see earlier in the thread) has been stalled for now, with an unexpected turn-around:
Marineland stoush headed for High Court next year | NATIONAL News

18 December 2011

The fight over the future of Napier's Marineland is now expected to go to the High Court next year.

It is the latest round in a long running stoush between Hawke's Bay locals and the council.

"We need to have an animal sanctuary here, an eco-education centre because without this place, without Marineland there is no other place in New Zealand with those facilities," said Cliff Church of Friends of Marineland.

Napier's iconic tourist attraction closed nearly two years ago, soon after the last dolphin died, but 40 animals are still living there.

ONE News could not get access to film the animals that live inside the close, with the council claiming that it wanted to protect its staff. However the council said the animals were being well cared for.

Friends of Marineland have been battling the council to re-open the marine zoo, saying there was not any public consultation.

"Napier got famous, became famous because of Marineland. It's held all the tourism businesses in the area up for a long time," Friends of Marineland's Denise Woodham.

They will be taking the case to the High Court early next year for a judicial review.

"Marineland, if it was re-opened, it would be a good opportunity to learn about the animals and learn how to treat them properly," said 12-year-old Marineland supporter Brianna Otto.

But the council said Marineland is not viable because it costs $500,000 a year to run and the government does not allow marine mammals to be bred in captivity anymore.

"Within five years of Marineland opening it was starting to plateau off and it has made a loss for definitely the last 20 years," said Napier mayor Barbara Arnott.

While court proceedings are in process the council said it cannot move the animals.
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Chlidonias · 17 May 2012

Court rules in favor of Marineland closure - Yahoo! New Zealand News

18 May 2012

A High Court has ruled in favour of the Napier City Council and its decision-making process to close Marineland.

Marineland closed in 2008 after the death of its remaining dolphin.

The decision has been a bone of contention in Napier.

The case was brought by Friends of Marineland, which was established as an advocate for the park and has pushed for its re-opening.

It sought a judicial review of the council's decision-making process in closing the park.

The High Court has ruled the council considered all reasonably practical options for Marineland and consulted on potential options.
The judge has ruled the nature of that consultation was genuine and not mere window dressing.
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Chlidonias · 31 Oct 2012

the penguins from Marineland are now at the National Aquarium down the road (and three earlier went to Auckland Zoo I believe).

I also just came across a Facebook page with photos of the Marineland animals etc: Friends of Marineland NZ | Facebook

Chlidonias · 31 Oct 2012

and an article from last month: Marine animals wanted for Marineland - National - NZ Herald News

27 September 2012

Plans to transform Napier's Marine Parade as a mecca for families, holidaymakers and tourists have not dampened the resolve of Marineland supporters who want marine animals to feature in the site's redevelopment.

The Napier City Council's Big Picture plans include the public-private development of a cable ski concept and other adventure tourism activity, Mayor Barbara Arnott announced yesterday.

Established in the 1960s as a performing dolphins spectacle attracting hundreds of thousands of holidaymakers to Napier, Marineland closed to the public after the death of the last-surviving dolphin Kelly in September 2008.

A decision on the permanent closure came two years later when the Minister of Conservation reaffirmed he would not permit the keeping of marine mammals in captivity.

Remaining animals have been tended by staff on-site, but education programmes shifted to the National Aquarium, also on Marine Parade, at the start of this year, and blue penguins from Marineland are to be housed at the aquarium in a newly-built enclosure opening in November.

Lobby group Friends of Marineland battled unsuccessfully in the High Court to have Marineland maintained as an animal sanctuary.

Friends spokeswoman Emily Otto had an "Oh, please No!" response when first reading of the cable ski concept, and the possibility of the site being taken over by water skiers and wake-boarders.

She called on Marineland supporters to speak up.

"Now more than ever, Marineland needs your support," she said.

"While this is still only an idea at this stage, in short, it looks like it involves demolishing the current site, getting rid of all the marine animals and turning the whole area into an artificial lake for thrill-seekers on water skis or wakeboards attached to a cable overhead.

"This would not be something for all ages to enjoy and is not something which promotes marine conservation or raises awareness about our precious marine life," she said.

"If you like the Friends of Marineland's proposal for an education-focused marine animal sanctuary (including a marine animals hospital) then please, tell the Napier City Council."

Businessman and Friends supporter Rodney Green, whose hotel interests include the Quality Inn opposite Marineland, lauded the council plans which also propose a second big-money item - a wave park towards the northern end of the Parade.

Other proposed ideas include a range of mainly free activities and open areas, some already existing and others including a junior bike track, a BMX jump park, a pier and other work, all in the approved or planning stages.

"It's a wonderful step forward, well overdue," Mr Green said. "The ideas are very, very good.

"But I still feel not enough was done to keep Marineland as a sea-life park, without [performing] dolphins."

Generally, the proposals were being well received yesterday, with some relief after delays in setting a path for the future.
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zooboy28 · 15 Nov 2012

Seals fate uncertain

New article on Marineland: Fate Of Napier's Marineland Seals And Sealions Uncertain... | Stuff.co.nz

Gives explcit numbers of seals, as well as unspecified "marine birds".

The fate of 11 seals and sea lions hangs in the balance while Napier City Council and the Conservation Department decide what to do with Marineland's few remaining animals.

The council moved Marineland's little penguins into a purpose-built home at the National Aquarium earlier this month, leaving behind six New Zealand fur seals, four Californian sea lions, one subantarctic seal and some marine birds.

Earlier this year, a High Court ruling upheld the council's decision to close the attraction, which shut in April 2009.

Council chief executive Neil Taylor said the council was in the "early stages" of working through what would happen to the animals. It had to shelve discussions on the future of the Marineland site and animals while it was before the court.

Mr Taylor said all options would be explored. Nothing had been ruled out, and euthanasing the seals was also a possibility.

"Nothing has been predetermined. All options are options," Mr Taylor said.

He did not know how long a decision would take.

Conservation Department area manager Chris Lester said relocating the animals to another facility such as Auckland Zoo or an Australian animal park was the preferred option.

"We will make decisions within existing statutory parameters together to ensure highest standards of animal welfare."

The closed Marineland site could be transformed into a cable-ski park if the council's proposal to transform Napier's foreshore into a "kids capital" got financial backing.

If private investors stump up, visitors will enjoy a new wave garden, BMX jump park and New Zealand's first cable-ski park, in addition to the already approved bike track for juniors, recreation and water area, playground extension and a stormwater pier.

Despite this, Friends of Marineland had not given up its fight to save the attraction, spokesman Cliff Church said. The council had won the legal battle but the group still believed the council had acted immorally in closing it down.

Mr Church said the group was continuing its push to save Marineland because it was what the public wanted. The group had raised about $800,000 should the council reconsider its decision to close the attraction.
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There is no way the Auckland could hold all the seals, although they could probably take some of the fur seals. I guess the rest of the animals will go to Australia (euthanasia would be a PR nightmare), unless another NZ zoo puts their hand up. Was Wellington Zoo planning on incorporating fur seals into "Meet the Locals"?

Chlidonias · 15 Nov 2012

zooboy28 said:

Was Wellington Zoo planning on incorporating fur seals into "Meet the Locals"?
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not according to their plan: http://www.zoochat.com/15/plan-meet-locals-development-210685/

Chlidonias · 12 Dec 2012

Rufus the Californian sealion has died: Napier Sea Lion Rufus Dies | Stuff.co.nz

10 December 2012

One of the few remaining sea lions at Napier's Marineland has died.

Rufus, a California sea lion, died on his way to see a vet in Palmerston North yesterday.

Napier City Council tourism services manager Neil Fergus said Rufus was being taken to Massey University for a check-up after he started showing signs of illness on Friday.

Massey staff are doing an autopsy to determine the seal's cause of death.

Rufus was born in December 22 2004, and died just short of his eighth birthday.

That leaves just 10 seals and sea lions remaining in Napier's closed Marineland.

The council and the Conservation Department are still deciding what to do with the animals now that the little penguins have moved into a purpose-built home at the National Aquarium.

Earlier this year, a High Court ruling upheld the council's decision to close the attraction, which shut in April 2009.

Council chief executive Neil Taylor said the council was still working through what would happen to the animals. It had to shelve discussions on the future of the Marineland site and animals while it was before the court.

Mr Taylor said all options would be explored. Nothing had been ruled out, and euthanising the seals was also a possibility.

He did not know how long a decision would take.

Conservation Department area manager Chris Lester said relocating the animals to another facility such as Auckland Zoo or an Australian animal park was the preferred option.

The closed Marineland site could be transformed into a cable-ski park if the council's proposal to transform Napier's foreshore into a "kids' capital" got financial backing.
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zooboy28 · 15 Jan 2013

Makea, one of the older Californian Sea Lions at Marineland has died while under anaesthetic. He was 22, and the father of Rufus, who died a month ago. There are now eight sea lions and fur seals remaining at the facility.

Second Marineland sea lion dies | Stuff.co.nz

A second sea lion has died at Napier's Marineland in as many months.

A male sea lion, Makea, died on Friday while being examined by a team of vets.

Napier City Council tourism services manager Neil Fergus said Makea had shown signs of being unwell for a number of days leading up to his death.

Marineland's vet was monitoring Makea but because the 22-year-old sea lion was uninterested in his food it was difficult to medicate him.

A team of vets from Massey University were called in and put Makea under general anaesthetic to assess him.

However, he did not recover from the anaesthetic.

Mr Fergus said an autopsy had been done to determine the seal's cause of death. He expected the results in the coming weeks.

Makea's death comes just a month after Rufus, a california sea lion, died on his way to see a vet in Palmerston North.

Rufus was just short of his 8th birthday. He too was unwell before he died.

There are now just eight seals and sea lions remaining at the closed Marineland.

The council and the Conservation Department are still deciding what to do with the animals now that the little penguins have moved into a purpose-built home at the National Aquarium.

Last year, a High Court ruling upheld the council's decision to close the attraction, which shut in April 2009.

Council chief executive Neil Taylor said the council was still working through what would happen to the animals.

It had to shelve discussions on the future of the Marineland site and animals while it was before the court.

Mr Taylor said all options would be explored. Nothing had been ruled out, and euthanising the seals was also a possibility.He did not know how long a decision would take.
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Chlidonias · 28 Sep 2013

the paperwork for importing NZ fur seals and subantarctic fur seals to Australia from New Zealand has apparently been approved (although it is still listed under "Invitations to comment" on the DSEWPaC site). The remaining pinnipeds at Napier Marineland will be shipped off to four facilities in Australia after undergoing quarantine. The Marineland site will be turned into a skate park.

As per the import applications the NZ fur seals should be going to Taronga and Melbourne Zoos and Dolphin Marine Magic at Coffs Harbour; the subantarctic fur seal should be going to Dolphin Marine Magic. I don't know where the Californian sealions are going (or what the fourth Australian zoo mentioned in the following article is).

No Party For Leaving Marineland Seals | Stuff.co.nz

26 Sept 2013

The eight seals and sea lions that have called Marineland home for up to 15 years will leave without fanfare to make way for a skate park.

Napier City Council last week announced it had decided to convert Marineland and SkateZone sites, and the Marine Parade carpark into a skate park, reef garden and amphitheatre, complete with carpark.

The iconic grandstand, once used to watch tricks performed by animals, would be used to watch tricks performed by those on wheels.

The concept, designed by Paris Magdalinos Architects is envisaged to be completed as soon as August 2015.

Mayor Barbara Arnott said the council saw the relocation of the existing SkateZone facility and expanding the activity for multipurpose use as a more holistic view of the Marine parade development.

"The relocation of SkateZone will see a world class skate bowl that will be an action sports attraction that also includes a junior scootering area, climbing wall and a multipurpose pitch/ track that can accommodate roller derby, street football (futsal) and basketball. The completion of this will see a quality family friendly Marine Parade from Ocean Spa to the Aquarium."

The skate park would be secure and bound by walls to provide shelter, however it would be opened up to the wider reserve area with windows.

The Napier Skating Trust would lease and manage the skate park, while youth organisation Atomic Events, which currently provided services to the council, could be co-located with SkateZone within the grandstand.

The plans included a separate building that could accommodate the 'Lick This' ice cream and gelato shop.

Prior to any redevelopment work taking place on the Marineland site, the remaining animals - five NZ fur seals, two California sea lions and one Antractic fur seal - would be flown to four zoos on Australia's east coast.

The youngest is New Zealand fur seal Iha, aged five.

The oldest is Orion, a sea lion aged 15 who was born at Marineland.

Tourism Services manager Neil Fergus said the animals would be quarantined at Marineland.

They had to spend four months in quarantine before being airfreighted to Australia.

Quarantine regulations meant there could not be a public farewell, he said.

Positions for the four Marineland staff had been held at the National Aquarium, Mr Fergus said.

The council had budgeted $4.7 million for the projects.
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Jabiru96 · 8 Oct 2013

The fourth 'zoo' might be Sea World.

Nisha · 23 Jan 2014

Tide goes out on Napier's marine zoo | Stuff.co.nz - The final pinnipeds are now in quarantine before being shipped to Seawold Gold Coast, Melbourne and Taronga later this year

zooboy28 · 23 Jan 2014

Nisha said: ↑

Tide goes out on Napier's marine zoo | Stuff.co.nz - The final pinnipeds are now in quarantine before being shipped to Seawold Gold Coast, Melbourne and Taronga later this year
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And to Dolphin Marine Magic at Coff's Harbour, which is a re-named Pet Porpoise Pool I think?

It's good that they are being moved, the facilities they move into will be significantly better than they have now. According to the article the two Californian Sea Lions are going to Sea World, but I'm not sure how the five NZ fur seals and one subantarctic fur seal will be split among the other three institutions.

Chlidonias · 25 Jan 2014

zooboy28 said: ↑

And to Dolphin Marine Magic at Coff's Harbour, which is a re-named Pet Porpoise Pool I think?

It's good that they are being moved, the facilities they move into will be significantly better than they have now. According to the article the two Californian Sea Lions are going to Sea World, but I'm not sure how the five NZ fur seals and one subantarctic fur seal will be split among the other three institutions.
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Dolphin Marine Magic is the same place as the Pet Porpoise Pool. Both names are as stupid as each other.

The subantarctic fur seal should be going to Dolphin Marine Magic, and the NZ fur seals split between there, Taronga and Melbourne (but I don't know in which numbers for each).

zooboy28 · 25 Jan 2014

Chlidonias said: ↑

Dolphin Marine Magic is the same place as the Pet Porpoise Pool. Both names are as stupid as each other.

The subantarctic fur seal should be going to Dolphin Marine Magic, and the NZ fur seals split between there, Taronga and Melbourne (but I don't know in which numbers for each).
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Yes, the names are definitely contenders for worst zoo names.

Why would the Sub-Antarctic fur-seal go to DMM/PPP? The census shows that Melbourne, Taronga and Sea World already hold this species, are they trying to keep them separate for some reason?

Chlidonias · 25 Jan 2014

zooboy28 said: ↑

Yes, the names are definitely contenders for worst zoo names.

Why would the Sub-Antarctic fur-seal go to DMM/PPP? The census shows that Melbourne, Taronga and Sea World already hold this species, are they trying to keep them separate for some reason?
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Perhaps the others don't have room for it? The applications to add NZ and subantarctic fur seals to the list of animals allowed to be imported into Australia specified which facilities the two species were going to. (Californian sealions were already on the allowable import list). I think DMM intends the animal as purely a display animal although the application uses the stock sentence "The animal will be used for display purposes, and if suitable, for breeding purposes to contribute to the long-term sustainability of the current captive population." (The application for the NZ fur seals uses the exact same sentence).

zooboy28 · 20 Jul 2014

Turns out the conditions at Marinland weren't suitable for quarantine, so they have been fixing them up, and the fur seals and sea-lions are only now entering their 120 day quarantine period.

Story here: Marineland animals off to Australia | Stuff.co.nz

Marineland's seals and sea lions look likely to be making their delayed trans-Tasman flights before the end of the year.

It has been six months since the Napier City Council announced the animals were going into a 120-day pre-export quarantine period before being flown to Australia, but the process has still not begun.

Council tourism manager Neil Fergus said various problems with the aged Marineland facilities and water treatment system had been fixed and, as of June 11, all that was needed were permits from the Australian zoos that would be the animals' new homes.

Once pre-export quarantine was complete, the five New Zealand fur seals, one subantarctic fur seal and two california sea lions will be airfreighted to Sea World on the Gold Coast, Melbourne Zoo, Sydney's Taronga Zoo and Dolphin Marine Magic at Coffs Harbour.

Once they arrive, they would need to undergo another quarantine process.

The executive director of the Australian Zoo Aquarium Association, Chris Hibbard, said obtaining permits was complicated, but he expected the animals to be in Australia by Christmas.

"There's a real desire among the zoos to minimise the number of shipments, so there is discussion among them to . . . achieve that," Hibbard said.

The Marineland site, which closed to the public in 2008, will be incorporated into the redevelopment of Marine Parade, set to include a skate park, reef garden and amphitheatre.
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Chlidonias · 20 Jul 2014

zooboy28 said: ↑

Turns out the conditions at Marineland weren't suitable for quarantine, so they have been fixing them up, and the fur seals and sea-lions are only now entering their 120 day quarantine period.

Story here: Marineland animals off to Australia | Stuff.co.nz
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well that's a surprise! I thought they would already be in Australia by now!

Kifaru Bwana · 20 Jul 2014

The quarantine lapse I am none to happy about. Any zoo / wildlife facility assisting Council there?

Why is it 120 days anyhow?

Another slightly related question on the subject of marine mammals: does NZ have any marine mammal rescue unit (and a facility to go with it)?

Chlidonias · 20 Jul 2014

Kifaru Bwana said: ↑

Another slightly related question on the subject of marine mammals: does NZ have any marine mammal rescue unit (and a facility to go with it)?
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no, there is not.

Jabiru96 · 16 Oct 2014

Article of the departure scheduled for December: Last seals to leave Marineland - national | Stuff.co.nz

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