DEATH OF DOLPHIN AND ANIMAL CRUELTY

[Anchor Lead]

A dolphin calf has died at the Whale Life Experience Museum in the city of Ulsan just 25 days after its birth. Harsh breeding conditions of dolphins, which are crammed into in small aquariums regardless of gender, are largely to blame for the tragedy.

[Pkg]

A dolphin calf has been found floating belly-up in the water at the Whale Life Experience Museum in Ulsan just 25 days after its birth. The museum staff performed CPR and did all they could to resuscitate the animal, but to no avail.

[Soundbite] KIM SEUL-KI(MUSEUM STAFF) : "We spotted the mother-dolphin pushing its calf, which appeared listless and came up to the water surface. We captured the calf right away and provided first aid."

A total of four dolphins were kept in this four-meter-deep ancillary pool with afloor space of 380 square meters. The four included a mother and its calf, as well as two others. Those conditions, in human terms, are like living in a tiny room that can barely accommodate one person. Dolphin deaths are not uncommon due to severe stress that they go through when living in narrow spaces. Seven dolphins have perished since the museum opened in 2009. Three out of four calves that were born in the museum died less than a month after their birth.

[Soundbite] CHOI JAE-CHUN(PROF., EWHA WOMANS UNIVERSITY) : "Dolphins become pregnant and give birth often because they live in narrow spaces and females are not separated from males. It is wrong to think that dolphin calves will grow up well without stress in small spaces."

To find out the cause of the calf's premature death, the Whale Life Experience Museum will perform an autopsy and investigate the breeding conditions of the dolphins.