PETA Calls On Marlins to Deep-Six Plan to Install Cruel Aquariums in New Ballpark

Artistic and High-Tech Innovations Would Make a Bigger Splash, Says Group

For Immediate Release:
June 14, 2010

Contact:
Ashley Byrne 757-622-7382

Miami -- Today, PETA sent a letter to Florida Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria urging him to scratch plans to install saltwater aquariums on either side of home plate at the team's new ballpark and consider highly entertaining, cruelty-free alternatives instead. PETA suggests that Loria leave sea animals in the sea--where they belong--and use artist-designed aquariums filled with captivating blown-glass fish, a huge plasma TV screen showing continuous footage of animals in their natural habitats, or fully operational robotic fish that would surely fascinate children and adults alike.

"Fish and other ocean-dwelling animals suffer horribly in captivity, and more and more people are crying foul when they see live-animal displays," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "This is an opportunity for Jeffrey Loria to 'think outside the tank' and create a truly entertaining and unique attraction for Marlins fans."

Confining fish and other marine animals to aquarium tanks and denying them everything that's natural and important to them is cruel. Scientific studies have proved that fish have a lot going on under those scales. Fish learn from one another, have long-term memories, recognize individuals in their schools, gather information by eavesdropping, and can even use tools, which until recently was thought to be an exclusively human ability. According to Dr. Culum Brown, a University of Edinburgh biologist, in many areas, the cognitive powers of fish "match or exceed those of 'higher' vertebrates, including non-human primates."

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PETA's letter to Florida Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria follows.

June 14, 2010 

Jeffrey Loria, Owner
Florida Marlins

Dear Mr. Loria, 

Congratulations on the progress of the Marlins' new stadium. Many of us here at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) are baseball fanatics, so we read with interest recent media reports on the Marlins' plan to include two saltwater aquariums in the new stadium. On behalf of our more than 2 million members and supporters--including thousands in Florida--I'd like to suggest some fresh alternative proposals to the aquariums that would awe fans and keep sea animals in the ocean where they belong.

Instead of relegating fish and other animals to unnatural environments inside tanks, consider some of the remarkable and cruelty-free alternatives that are available:

*  Artist-designed aquariums full of beautiful blown-glass animals offer unique and eye-catching displays.

*  High-definition plasma screens showing underwater footage of sea animals in their natural environment are as educational as they are stunning. Screens can play individually to display multiple images, or all the screens can display the same scene to showcase the true magic and mystery of the seas.

*  Technology has come so far that developers in the UK have designed intriguing robotic fish that can "swim" through water. These artificial fish would delight Marlins fans young and old.

Studies show that fish feel pain, have impressive long-term memories, and maintain sophisticated social structures. Being exposed to the loud crowds, bright lights, and reverberations of a baseball stadium would be stressful and maddening for any large animals held captive in tanks that, to them, are like bathtubs. Collectors often drag fish from their ocean homes by dousing reefs with cyanide, which stuns some fish and sends others into spasms. Half the affected fish die on the reef, and 40 percent of those who survive the initial poisoning die before they reach an aquarium. Farm-raised fish are subject to severe crowding and disease.

The new stadium provides the perfect opportunity for the Marlins to think "outside the tank" and install fish-friendly and visually stunning artificial aquariums. I hope to hear that you have decided to leave fish in the ocean where they belong. Thank you for your consideration.

Kind regards,

Tracy Reiman
Executive Vice President