SeaWorld to end orca breeding programme

Tilikum, a killer whale at SeaWorld amusement park, performs during a show in Orlando, in this September 3, 2009 file photoImage copyrightReuters
Image captionSeaWorld keeps nearly 30 whales in captivity
The US theme park operator SeaWorld says it is ending its controversial orca breeding programme.
The decision means the orcas currently at the parks will be "the last generation", the company said.
SeaWorld, which has 12 parks across the US, has faced criticism over the alleged poor treatment of its captive orcas, also known as killer whales.
The company said the orcas would be likely to die if it released them into the wild.
"For as long as they live, the orcas at SeaWorld will stay in our parks," the company said in a Los Angeles Times op-ed.
SeaWorld has previously announced that it will phase out orca shows.
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) worked with SeaWorld on its new policies and said the announcement signalled "that the era of captive display of orcas will end".
SeaWorld stopped capturing live marine mammals decades ago, with the majority of its nearly 30 orcas having been born in captivity.
In this photo taken on Dec. 30, 2005, Dawn Brancheau, a whale trainer at SeaWorld Adventure Park, poses while performing.Image copyrightAP
Image captionSeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau was killed by Tilikum, an orca, in 2010
SeaWorld's treatment of its orcas was highlighted in the 2013 documentary Blackfish, which focused on a series of violent incidents involving an orca called Tilikum.
The film also raised questions over the ethics of breeding programmes and practices such as the separation of calves from their mothers.
SeaWorld described the film as inaccurate, misleading and exploitative.
Blackfish director Gabriela Cowperthwaite was quoted by HSUS as saying the decision to end orca breeding represented "truly meaningful change".