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Sure, this tragic tale took place in Switzerland, but Miami is home to almost as many dolphins as it is to techno DJs, and it’s a sad reminder that the two should never, ever be mixed.
The Connyland aquarium and amusement park decided it would be a good idea to host a two-day rave on their property, and told animal rights activists that their dolphin’s enclosures, only 50 meters from where the rave was to be held, were designed to be soundproof.
So the rave went on, and hard techno music blasted for 16 total hours at the park.
“The sound levels which would have been heard by the dolphins is comparable with that of a pneumatic drill on top volume,” Andreas Morlok, an animal rights activist told The Daily Mail. “Before the event we warned of these noise levels and the damage which could be done and called for the event to be called off.”
At first the dolphins seemed unaffected and were forced to continue on performing at the park. However, according to The Local, about 20 days later, Shadow, an 8-year-old dolphin, was found disoriented and agitated in his pool and eventually died a few hours later.
Now animal protection groups claim that the non-stop noise and stress from the rave may have damaged Shadow’s immune system.
World Radio Switzerland now reports that a second dolphin also died from similar mysterious symptoms over the weekend.
Though an official cause of death won’t be available for a few weeks, it seems it’s a safe beat that dolphins and techno don’t mix.
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