In hindsight, it seems ludicrous to think that holding an animal like Ramu in captivity would ever end well.

Key points: Efforts to ban keeping killer whales in captivity are gaining momentum around the world

Efforts to ban keeping killer whales in captivity are gaining momentum around the world Conservationists and some marine scientists argue that dolphins should also be removed from captivity

Conservationists and some marine scientists argue that dolphins should also be removed from captivity Sea World on the Gold Coast is the last Australian facility to breed dolphins in captivity

At a length of almost six metres and weighing in at two tonnes, the male orca became the star attraction of Marineland on the Gold Coast in March, 1970.

"If the Australian public react like the public do in America we are on to a sure thing," Marineland director David Brown told the ABC at the time.

"He's in excellent shape … in a matter of a few days he'll be coming up to a platform and accepting food right out of our hands."

But Ramu died within two months.

While public attitudes towards captive orcas have changed dramatically since then, some conservationists argue that we will soon look back on the treatment of captive dolphins in the same way.

Will the 'Blackfish effect' work for dolphins?

Public perceptions around orcas in captivity have shifted significantly, especially since the 2013 film Blackfish documented the history and treatment of captive killer whales.

Canada has passed legislation banning whales, dolphins or porpoises from being bred or held in captivity, while SeaWorld in the United States announced in 2016 that it had stopped breeding orcas.

In September this year the New South Wales Government established an inquiry into the exhibition of dolphins and other exotic animals at commercial facilities.

Trainers have Orca killer whales perform for the crowd during a show at the animal theme park SeaWorld in San Diego, California. ( Supplied: Reuters )

Virgin Holidays announced in July that it will no longer promote or sell tickets to attractions which use captive cetaceans, with TripAdvisor following suit in October.

Those announcements followed the Dolphin Marine Conservation Park in NSW's decision in March to no longer breed dolphins in captivity, leaving Sea World on the Gold Coast as the last Australian facility to still do so.

Cathy Williamson, from the international charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation, said the phasing out of captive orcas at commercial facilities is just the first step.

"What we want them also to do is to focus on the hundreds of bottlenose dolphins they hold in captivity, also the belugas, pilot whales and the other species," she said.

"It's now their turn — they suffer from similar problems and that needs be recognised."

Call for measured, rational change

Griffith University marine scientist Dr Olaf Meynecke said despite captive and wild dolphins having similar life spans, "the same life expectation doesn't necessarily mean that they had a much better life than in the wild."

He said while there should be a change in attitudes around captive dolphins, it may not be as radical as that seen with orcas.

Dolphin Marine Conservation Park announced in 2019 that it would no longer breed captive dolphins. ( Supplied: Dolphin Marine Conservation Park )

"Putting an orca, for example, into rehabilitation or into captivity seems a lot more complicated and difficult process to do," he said.

"Orcas have evidently also killed, attacked trainers, whereas that's not the case for dolphins."

But Dr Meynecke said Sea World plays an important conservation role due to the high cost of rehabilitating injured wild dolphins — he said the use of them for entertainment is outdated.

"A dolphin is not like a dog that we can use for our amusement … these are some of the more intelligent animals on this planet," he said.

"They've got their own languages and they do actually create friends … they create bonds, they develop very distinctive hunting techniques that are adapted to the environment."

Aquariums 'more required now than ever before' says Sea World

Sea World on Queensland's Gold Coast has 28 dolphins in captivity, three of which were rescued from the wild. ( AAP: Dave Hunt )

Sea World on the Gold Coast has 28 captive dolphins, three of which were rescued and are unable to be released back into the wild.

Head of Marine Sciences, Wayne Philips, said community expectations are changing, but that there is no need for Sea World to end the practice.

Loading

"We need to think of what we lose by doing that, not what is gained," Mr Philips said.

"What we do here at Sea World with our presentations from our dolphins and seals, is what we refer to as entertainment, and it's a proven model of learning

"We generate an emotional connection to nature and wildlife which encourages people to change their daily behaviour."

Mr Philips said Sea World's research and rescue operations have provided valuable insights to dolphin behaviour and health.

"When you're looking at marine mammal wild populations, it's hard to get access to them," he said.

"When we do get access, it's usually an animal that's either sick or, unfortunately, dead.

"There's not much we can do with those specimens, so having a human care control group is really important to researchers."

Sea World on the Gold Coast has never held captive killer whales and is not commercially related to SeaWorld in the United States.

China fuelling wild capture of dolphins, whales

Opposition to the use of captive dolphins and other marine vertebrates for entertainment is nothing new.

A 1985 Federal Parliamentary report noted "critics have argued that the question of keeping cetacea captive is essentially an ethical one which cannot be resolved simply by weighing scientific evidence."

Under Australian law, the import or export whales, dolphins or porpoises is not permitted unless under special conservation plans, while the rehabilitation and release of injured wild dolphins is managed through state government agencies.

Dolphins perform during a show at Coffs Harbour's Dolphin Marine Conservation Park, which has since decided to stop captive breeding. ( Facebook: Dolphin Marine Magic )

Yet Dr Meynecke said ethical standards around dolphins in captivity are changing.

"Younger generations might see animals in a different way than 40 years ago," he said.

"And we also have different understandings of animals and what they require."

While efforts to phase out or ban whale and dolphin captivity are underway in Canada, India, Croatia, Chile and Costa Rica, Ms Williamson said the practice remains problematic elsewhere.

"China is a particular case that we're really concerned about — the number of whale and dolphin facilities there continues to grow, and unfortunately that's fuelling wild captures in Russia and also … Taiji in Japan."

"Whales and dolphins fare very poorly in captivity.

"It's impossible to replicate their natural environment and their social groups, which are very complex.