The Miami Seaquarium Finally Closed — Now What Happens to the Dolphins?

Many marine animals have died in captivity while living under torturous conditions at the merciless Miami Seaquarium, owned by the Mexico-based Dolphin Company. No, the Miami Seaquarium isn't the only barbaric facility to have imprisoned dolphins and other marine animals under scarily inhumane conditions, but their laundry list of animal abuse accusations and violations is a mile long.

Now that the facility has shuttered and declared bankruptcy, what becomes of the remaining animals?

Buckle in, because the good news — the Miami Seaquarium closing — is followed by more distressing news — the remaining living animals are likely to be sold off to facilities and traveling shows that care not for animal welfare and humane living conditions.

Below, we report on the Miami Seaquarium closing down, what happens next for the remaining animals who haven't already heartbreakingly died, and all other important details that you should know.

According to a report in the Miami New Times, it was revealed in a bankruptcy filing that the Mexico-based Dolphin Company "intends to relocate the animals to zoos, aquariums, and wildlife centers in states including Washington, Indiana, Virginia, and Kansas. The bankruptcy judge still has to approve the transfer of the assets — in other words, the animals."

Any hope that the animals (who lived through barbaric treatment at Miami Seaquarium) would be transferred to sanctuaries is diminishing.

As animal welfare groups have documented over the years, dolphins, orcas, and other marine life who were imprisoned within the hell that was formerly known as the Miami Seaquarium, lived tragically sad lives with little stimulation, care, love, and space to thrive.

The list of animal safety violations is indeed long, and it is no surprise that animal welfare groups have long targeted the Miami Seaquarium to shut it down and relocate the remaining living animals to sanctuaries.

"Miami Seaquarium, which first opened in 1955, shut its doors last month after years of controversy and troubling reports of animal safety violations," according to the Miami New Times. "Last year, Miami-Dade County terminated the facility’s lease on the publicly owned site, citing the 'long and troubling history' of animal welfare violations and marine mammal deaths."

Despite experts' urging the Dolphin Company to relocate the animals to safer facilities, the Dolphin Company remains stubborn.

"As the park’s owner prepared to relocate the animals following the marine park’s closure, animal rights activists and former Miami Seaquarium trainers urged the Dolphin Company to pause the relocation, assess the health of the surviving animals, and develop a plan to move them to sanctuaries or release them back into the ocean. Two bottlenose dolphins have died at the marine park in the last three months," per the Miami New Times report.

At this point, we know of the impending statuses of a few animals thanks to the details of the bankruptcy filing. Per the report, the Dolphin Company intends to transfer a 22-year-old bottlenose dolphin named Noelani to the Brookfield Zoo for $10,000.

An additional 27 American flamingos will be sold to the NOVA Wild zoo, while 11 African penguins will be sold to the Tanganyika Wildlife Park.