LOLITA THE KILLER WHALE: Miami Seaquarium's 'Little Girl'

by GREG MAY
(Orlando, Florida)

In September 2011 the Miami Seaquarium celebrates its 56th anniversary.

Also that month their 'little girl' celebrates 41 years making the Seaquarium her home.

No other killer whale, or orca has lived in an oceanarium as long as she.

'Lolita' came to the Miami Seaquarium in September 1970. She was captured in the chilly waters of Puget Sound by Ted Griffin, owner of the Seattle Marine Aquarium.

When she arrived at her new tropical home, the Seaquarium pulled out the publicity stops to inform the world that their resident male orca, Hugo, was about to receive his bride.

"Here comes the bride, big, fat and wide" was sung throughout the media as the 15-foot, 3000-pound female orca was lowered into her tank of chilled seawater at the Seaquarium.

The Miami Seaquarium became the first oceanarium in Florida to exhibit a killer whale when Hugo arrived from Seattle in May 1968. At the time of his arrival, Hugo was 13 feet long and weighed just under a ton. Two years later, Hugo had attained a length of 18 feet and weighed well over two tons.

So the Seaquarium fashioned a new home for Hugo. Christened the 'Whale Bowl', the 2000-seat facility encompassed a tank 80 feet long by 60 feet wide and 20 feet deep containing 500,000 gallons of seawater chilled to 65 degrees.

The big "Splashdown" as they called it occurred in September 1970 when Hugo was lifted in a sling by a crane from his tank and moved to his new home.

Three days after the move, Lolita arrived. At first, she was placed in the original tank that was Hugo's first home.


The two lovesick killer whales whistled back and forth even though they could not see each other. Hugo's new home had an acrylic bubble window where his public could admire him underwater. One night - in an effort to reach his intended - Hugo rammed the plexiglass viewport and as a result got the end of his nose, or rostrum cut off!

Seaquarium's veterinarian, JESSE WHITE, retrieved the tip of his rostrum from the bottom of the pool and sewed it back on. The tissue regenerated and Hugo suffered no ill effects.

When Hugo and Lolita were finally brought together in the Whale Bowl, a spectacular behavior was conditioned in which both orcas made a simultaneous jump to touch target buoys suspended high over the water.

This writer was once sitting on the very first row of the Whale Bowl with his cousins, Betty and Kelsey Riblett of Delray Beach, Florida when the orcas made their famous duo jump and found out what 'tidal wave splash' meant!

One of the more famous publicity stunts that occurred at the Miami Seaquarium was when television star JACKIE GLEASON - who had just shed 40 pounds - gave Hugo a lecture on obesity.

Although Hugo is no longer with us, Lolita continues to entertain and educate the crowds that come to see her every day.

And for an oceanarium like the Seaquarium to maintain an orca for as long as they have is proof that these spectacular marine mammals receive the best of care in captivity.