Conservation groups alarmed at marine mammals' deaths in Spain

Conservation groups on Sunday condemned the death of a dolphin transferred from France to a Spanish marine park, saying it added to the deaths of other sea mammals recently moved to Spain from Canada.

Rocky, a 29-year-old male dolphin, died Saturday night in the Selwo Marina park near Malaga in Spain, where he had been transferred in July, according to the Marineland park in France where he had been previously kept.

Both Marineland, located on the French Riviera and closed to the public since January 2025, and Selwo Marina are owned by a Spanish group called Parques Reunidos, itself owned by a Swedish investment group called EQT AB.

Rocky's death followed those of a dolphin and a beluga whale that were moved from a Canadian park to another Spanish marine park, in Valencia, the Oceanografic aquarium, described as the largest aquarium in Europe.

The Canadian dolphin and beluga were transferred from a similarly shuttered park, which was also called Marineland but which is not connected with the Marineland park in France nor Parques Reunidos.

Another three belugas transferred from the Canadian Marineland to a park in the United States, in Chicago, also died.

"After the deaths of the five mammals from Canada's Marineland... it's Rocky's turn," the group Sea Shepherd France said in a statement posted on X.

It said it had warned about the health risks to the animals transferred from the French park, which it had unsuccessfully attempted to stop through legal action.

The group said the French government was responsible for the transfers and should be held accountable.

Another conservation group, Tilikum's Spirit, said that, in its view, Rocky had died "because of a transfer decided by the captivity industry".

"We asked from the start for all the animals in Marineland to stay" and "we warned that this could happen", it said.

Rocky was born in captivity on March 13, 1997 in the Zoo Aquarium of Madrid, which is also owned by Parques Reunidos. He was transferred to the group's Marineland in France in 2011.

His transfer to Parques Reunidos's Selwo Marina park happened along with seven other dolphins from the French park.

Another four were scheduled to be transferred from Marineland in France to Valencia, in Spain.

Several groups have tried to stop the transfers, arguing that they should not be allowed under a 2021 French law prohibiting the captivity of sea mammals.