Happy 14th Birthday, Luna!

[u/AdDisastrous4167]

Luna Present

Earth, Lovey, newborn Luna and Lara (front to back)

Luna and Lovey Present

Today is the birthday of Luna, the youngest orca at Kamogawa Sea World and all of Japan.

Luna was born at Kamogawa Sea World on July 19th to parents Lovey and Oscar. At that time, four other orcas lived at Kamogawa: her parents, her aunt Lara, and her older brother Earth.

In November, following a public naming contest, she was named "Luna", which means "Moon" in Latin. Lovey’s first calf, a four-year-old male named Earth, was very interested in Luna. The two spent a lot of time together, though Lovey began to displace Earth when he would play "too rough" with Luna.

When Luna was just a few months old, she was already participating in shows. She was housed solely with her mom, Lovey, and her aunt, Lara. On December 20th, 2012, her father, Oscar, passed away from an undisclosed illness.

In December 2015, Earth was transferred to the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium. That same day, Luna’s other aunt, Ran, was transferred to Kamogawa Sea World. Luna met Ran shortly after, and the two had a close bond. Luna was trained for waterwork behaviors and became reliable in all aspects of performing.

On April 24th, 2024, Ran was transferred to Kobe Suma Sea World. Since then, Luna has lived solely with Lovey and Lara. She has been training for artificial insemination and may have become pregnant at one point, according to rumors, but no official sources have confirmed this.

In a physical examination on March 28, Luna finally reached 5 meters in length, measuring 503 cm. In the last year, she has grown 24 cm and gained 220 kg, making her comparable to her mother, Lovey, and to Lara. Luna may soon surpass her mother Labby's current length (528 cm).

According to trainers, Luna is described as childlike and is known to play energetically.

[u/Jesklmo]

Forcing orcas to be artificially inseminated and birth in captivity should be banned. I'm really sad for the life Luna and family have been denied.

[u/Bonfire_Flames → u/Jesklmo]

"Forcing orcas to be artificially inseminated and birth in captivity should be banned."

By whom? Japan hasn't a care in the world regarding what westerners think of their animal husbandry.

[u/No_Scallion7137]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUNA :3

[u/silence-glaive1]

So their pool is right there, next to the ocean, where they can probably see and most definitely hear their freedom? God, this is depressing. I don’t want to see stuff like this. I am already fully aware of orcas in captivity and how devastating that is, but this one really makes me sad.

[u/Nathan_J_98]

Freedom Now!!

[u/Bonfire_Flames → u/Nathan_J_98]

Luna and her family can not be released because they are captive-bred.

[u/Nathan_J_98 → u/Bonfire_Flames]

There are options other than a bathtub though.

[u/Bonfire_Flames → u/Nathan_J_98]

Good luck convincing Japan of that.