the whale pool

facility dimensions, focusing on volume

[the-whale-pool]

L’Oceanografic 

Arctic - beluga habitat, 2003, indoor tank

Location: Valencia, Spain

Purpose: Display, Breeding, and Nursery

Number of pools: 4

         - All dimensions unknown other than a maximum depth of 16 

Total volume of habitat: 946,264

Animals currently holding:

         - Beluga (2 males, 1 female)

Alternative perspectives:

Sources [x]

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Barcelona Zoo

Aquarama, 1968, defunct outdoor tank

Location: Barcelona, Spain 

Purpose: Performance, Breeding, and Nursery

Number of pools: 1

         - A pool: (36)^2 pi x 20 = 602,524

Animals once held:

         - Atlantic bottlenose dolphins

         - Orca (Icelandic, 1983-1994, 1 male) 

Alternative perspectives: 

Diagrams: 

Sources [x, x]

[the-whale-pool]

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom  

Merlin’s Dolphin Theater, outdoor tank

Location: Vallejo, California, USA 

Purpose: Performance

Number of pools: 4

          - Show pool:  L X W X 20 = 416,000

          - Holding pool 1: L X W X 13 = 129,00

          - Holding pool 2: L X W X 13 = 162,000

          - Med pool: L X W X 7 = 8,000

Total volume: 715,000

Animals currently holding:

Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (exact demographics unknown) 

Alternative perspectives:

Diagrams: 

Sources [x,x,x]

[the-whale-pool]

SeaWorld Orlando

Shamu Stadium, 1984, 1995*, outdoor tank

Location: Orlando, Florida, USA

Purpose: Performance, Display, Breeding and Nursery 

Number of pools: 7

         - A pool:  170 X 75 X 34 = 2,692,800

         - B pool: 75 X 75 X 15 = 436,682

          - C pool: 75 X 75 X 15 = 436,682 

          - D pool: L X W X 12 = 98,511

          - E pool: 125 X 75 X 15 = 706,860

          - F pool: L X W X 12 = 98,511

          - G pool: 125 X 75 X 28 = 1,683,117

Total volume of habitat: 6,153,163

Animals currently holding (or once held if defunct):

         - Orca (Icelandic and Resident / Transient hybrid; 2 males, 4 females) 

         -  Short fin pilot whale (1 male, 3 females)

Alternative perspectives: 

Diagrams:

Google maps

*Update year is in reference to the addition of G pool. This date is an estimate considering that the pool is not mentioned in the 1992 transportation documents but is referenced as the “newest addition” to the Shamu pool complex in Sensations, a SeaWorld promotional video copyrighted in 1995. 

Sources [x, x, x]

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Planete Sauvage 

Marine City, 1998, outdoor tank 

Location: Port-Saint-Père, France 

Purpose: Performance, Display, Breeding and Nursery 

Number of pools: 4

         - Pool 1:  187 X 131 X (12 - 16) = V

         - Pool 2: pi (33) ^2 X (13 - 16) = 381,763 

         - Pool 3: L X W X (1 - 6) = V 

         - Pool 4: 98 X W X (12 - 16) = V 

Total volume: 1,981,290

Animals currently holding (or once held if defunct):

         - Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (5 males, 3 females)

Alternative perspectives: 

Diagrams: [pictures]

Google maps

Sources [x, x]

[the-whale-pool]

Kewalo Marine Lab 

Dolphin habitat, 1959, 1969, 1971 defunct outdoor tank

Location: Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

Purpose: Research

Number of pools: 2

         - A pool: pi(25)^2 X 6 = 86,287

         - B pool: pi(25)^2 X 6 = 86,287

Total volume: 172,573

Animals held

         -Atlantic bottlenose dolphins 

Alternative perspectives: 

Sources [x, x, x, x]

[the-whale-pool]

Marineland France

Original orca habitat, 1970-1986, defunct outdoor tank

Location: Antibes, Côte d’Azur, France 

Purpose: Performance

Number of pools: 2

         - Square pool:  82 X 49 X 11 = 330,624

         - Med pool: 49 X 26 X 11 = 14,014

Total volume: 344,638

Animals held 

         -Orcas (Resident and Icelandic) 

Alternative perspectives: 

Sources [x,x]

[the-whale-pool]

Parc Asterix 

Theatre de Poseidon, indoor/ outdoor tank 

Location: Plailly, France

Purpose: Performance, Breeding and Nursery

Number of pools: 3

         - Outdoor pool:  L X W X (8 - 15) = 857,503

         - Indoor habitats (med + holding) L X W X 8 = 145,295

Total volume: 1,002,798

Animals currently holding:

         -Atlantic bottlenose dolphins ( 2 males, 6 females)

Alternative perspectives:

Google maps

Sources [x]

[the-whale-pool]

Kolmården Wildlife Park

Marine World, 1993, 2008, indoor tank

Location: Bråviken bay, Norrköping, Sweden

Purpose: Performance, Breeding and Nursery  

Number of pools: 5

         - Show pool: L X W X (10 - 13) = V         

         - Holding pool: L X W X D = V

          - Med pool 1: L X W X D = V

          - Med pool 2: L X W X D = V         

          - Lagoon: L X W X (10 - 20) = 739,681

Total volume: 1,690,701

Animals currently holding:

         - Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (2 males, 7 females)

Alternative perspectives: 

Diagrams: [pictures]

Sources: [x, x]

[the-whale-pool]

Institute for Marine Mammal Studies

Main rehabilitation pool, outdoor tank 

Location: Gulfport, Mississippi, USA

Purpose: Swim

Number of pools: 6

         - Entire habitat:  125 X 60 X 12 = 650,000

Animals currently holding:

         -Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (1 female, 1 male)

Alternative perspectives: 

Sources [x]

[the-whale-pool]

Marineland France

Dolphin Show Stadium, 1986, outdoor tank 

Location: Antibes, Côte d'Azur, France

Purpose: Performance

Number of pools: 3

         - Show pool:  230 X 98 X (8-33) = 2,113,376

         - Oval pool 1: 33.5^2 pi X 15 = 395,606

         - Oval pool 2 (since updated) 33.5^2 pi X 15 = 395,606

Total volume: 2,904,587

Animals currently holding / held: 

         -Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (exact demographics unknown)

         -Orcas (Icelandic and Resident) held between 1986-1996) 

Alternative perspectives: 

Google maps

Sources [x]

[the-whale-pool]

SeaWorld San Antonio 

Shamu Stadium, 1988, outdoor tank

Location: San Antonio, Texas, USA

Purpose: Performance, Breeding and Nursery 

Number of pools: 4 

         - A pool: L X W X 35 = 2,110,000

         - B pool: L X W X 17 = 998,000

         - C pool: L X W X 17 = 998,000

         - D pool: L X W X 10 = 60,000

Total volume: 4,166,000

Animals currently holding:

         - Orca (2 males, 3 females)

Alternative perspectives: 

Sources [X]

[the-whale-pool]

Georgia Aquarium

Coldwater Quest (beluga habitat), 2005, indoor mixed-species tank  

Location: Atlanta, Georgia, USA 

Purpose: Display, Encounter, Breeding, and Nursery   

Number of pools: 3 

         - Main pool: 82 X W X 30 = V

         -Med pool: 19.5 X 17 X D = V 

          -Holding pool: 35 X W X D = V 

Total volume: 700,000

Animals currently holding:

         -Beluga whale (1 male, 2 females)

          -Harbor seals 

Alternative perspectives: 

Diagrams: 

Sources [x]

[the-whale-pool]

Zoo Nuremberg 

Dolphin Lagoon, 1971, 2011, (semi-natural, indoor-outdoor, mixed-species enclosure) 

Location: Nuremberg, Germany 

Purpose: Performance, Breeding, Display and Nursery 

Number of pools: 8-10

         - Basin 1 (nursery - can be divided into 2):  L X W X 13 = 284,778

         - Basin 2/3 (display and performance): L X W X (16-23) = 876,153

         - Basin 4 (sea lion only): L X W X (1.5-5) = 96,079

         - Basin 5 (holding): L X W X 8 = 56,744

         - Basin 6 (holding): L X W X 8 = 128,599

         - Performance basin (old dolphinarium): L X W X (13-14) = 189,676

         - Round basin (old dolphinarium): L X W X 14 = 123,897

          **Dolphins only have access to basins 1 and 6, as well as the indoor old

             dolphinarium, during winter months 

Total volume: 1,755,925

Animals currently holding:

         -Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (1 male, 6 female)

         - California sealions 

Alternative perspectives:

[Above two pictures are the air dome used to warm basins 1 and 6 during cooler months) 

[Above two are the old dolphinarium, originally constructed in 1971] 

Diagrams: 

Sources [x,x]

[the-whale-pool]

Kujukushima Aquarium

Dolphin habitat, outdoor tank 

Location: Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan 

Purpose: Performance

Number of pools: 2

       - Main pool: 19pi^2 x 15 = 123,477

       - Holding pool: 9pi^2 x 5 = 9,074

Total volume of habitat: 132,551

Animals currently held: unknown (likely Pacific bottlenose and/ or Risso’s)

Alternative perspectives:

Google maps: 

Sources: [x] 

[the-whale-pool]

Zoomarine Algarve

Sam’s Stadium, outdoor tank

Location: Albufeira, Portugal

Purpose: Performance

Number of pools: 5

       - All other dimensions unknown

Total volume of habitat: 523,061

Animals currently held

       - Atlantic bottlenose dolphins (exact population unknown)

Google maps

Sources: [x] 

[the-whale-pool]

Loro Parque 

Orca Ocean, outdoor tank

Location: Tenerife, Canary Islands 

Purpose: Performance, breeding and nursery

Number of pools: 4

       - Main pool: 167 x 80 x 39 = 2,424,571

       - Holding pool 1: 147 x 100 x 27 = 1,870,866

       - Holding pool 2: 120  x 67 x 27 = 1,197,492

       - Med pool: 41 x 23 x 14 = 95,895

Total volume of habitat: 5,589,088

Animals currently held

       - Orcas (3 female, 3 male)

Diagrams: 

Alternative perspectives:

Google images

Sources: [x]