39 



Prepared Statement of Dr. John Grandy, Ph.D. 



Good afternoon. Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, I am Dr. John W. 

 Grandy, vice president of Wildlife and Habitat Protection for The Humane Society 

 of the United States (HSUS). I thank you for the opportunity today to testify on be- 

 half of The HSUS and 16 other member organizations of the Marine Mammal Pro- 

 tection Coalition (MMPC) and our combined membership and constituency of over 

 2 million persons worldwide, regarding the issue of marine mammal public display 

 and scientific research. The HSUS is the largest animal protection organization in 

 the United States. We have ten regional offices, an educational division, legislative 

 experts and a team of investigators. We have substantial programs focused on pro- 

 vimng humane stewardship for companion animals, laboratory animals, farm ani- 

 mals, and wildlife. The HSUS has recently established an international arm, The 

 Humane Society International (HSI), through which we will extend our programs 

 of animal protection around the world. 



We appreciate the committee's prompt attention to this issue and look forward to 

 working with you, Mr. Chairman, to preserve the principles of the Marine Mammal 

 Protection Act (MMPA) of 1972 during its re-authorization process. 



introduction 



Our position has long been that under most circumstances wild animals should 

 exist undisturbed in their natural environments. Captivity of marine mammals in 

 zoos, aquaria, and marine parks and lethal and invasive scientific research are es- 

 sentially antithetical to this position. Frequently, captivity and research result in 

 abuse, neglect, suffering, and premature death of individual animals. Therefore, we 

 maintain that captivity of and research on marine mammals should only be under- 

 taken for the direct benefit of the species and that all individual animals involved 

 should be treated in a humane, professional manner where the welfare of the indi- 

 vidual is always paramount. 



SPECIFIC proposals 



1. The MMPA should be amended to prohibit all forms of direct contact between 

 humans (other than facility animal caretakers) and marine mammals. 



We believe that petting pools, monitored feeding programs, and swim-with-the- 

 dolphin programs do not constitute "public display" and as such, they should not 

 be exempted from the MMPA. Indeed, these interactive programs should be specifi- 

 cally prohibited. Such programs pose unacceptable levels of risk both to the animals 

 (e.g. health hazards, stress levels) and to the humans participating. There have 

 been a disturbing number of reports of aggression and sexual behavior between dol- 

 phins and humans in swim-witn-the-dolphin programs. In fact, increasing numbers 

 of injuries to participants have resulted in legal actions taken against program oper- 

 ators and have opened the door to potential litigation against the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service (NMFS). Regardless of the number of years in captivity or even 

 being captive-bred, these are wild, not domestic, animals; large, powerful, and pos- 

 sessing sharp teeth, and are known to exhibit aggression toward each other under 

 various naturally-occurring circumstances. The potential for tragedy in forced inter- 

 actions with humans is obvious. 



2. The MMPA should be amended to prohibit the intentional feeding of marine 

 mammals in the wild. 



We strongly supported the ruling by NMFS that feeding marine mammals in the 

 wild constitutes a "take" under the MMPA and fully endorsed efforts by NMFS to 

 act in the best interests of the animals by issuing regulations banning this disrup- 

 tive practice. Feeding wild animals to artificially create opportunities to observe 

 them in the wild fosters dependency on humans, disrupts natural foraging behavior, 

 and sets the stage for potentially injurious encounters, both for the animals and for 

 humans. 



3. The MMPA should require that permits be obtained to determine placement of 

 stranded marine mammals deemed unreleasable. 



The MMPA is unclear about the determination of the releasability of stranded or 

 injured animals. In fact, this ambiguity has allowed animals to be held captive for 

 years in substandard situations by facilities lacking permits or the ability to meet 

 permitting requirements. We believe that the process oy which facilities receive ani- 

 mals and determine their eventual fate must be made more stringent. Under no cir- 

 cumstances should a facility be issued a permit to retain a stranded animal before 

 that animal has been evaluated as to its releasability. The evaluation itself should 

 be carefully monitored, especially when the species or stock involved is endangered, 



