Nine dolphins are still living in concrete swimming pools at a closed dolphin facility in Cancún, Mexico. A year after the country approved a major ban on dolphin shows and other forms of marine mammal entertainment.
The dolphins are being kept at a Dolphin Discovery facility next to the former Ventura Park in Cancún’s hotel zone. The attraction is no longer open to visitors, but the animals have not yet been moved.
Recent images shared by animal campaigners have raised new concerns about the condition of the pools. Footage taken from above appears to show dark and discoloured water, algae and dolphins still confined to the small concrete enclosures with no shade.
Campaigners have described the conditions as extremely poor. Dolphin Discovery has previously said the nine dolphins continue to receive daily care.
The disagreement shows one of the biggest problems facing Mexico since it changed its wildlife law in 2025. Ending dolphin entertainment is much easier on paper than deciding what should happen to the dolphins already living in captivity.
Mexico banned dolphin entertainment in 2025
In June 2025, Mexico approved changes to its General Wildlife Law that banned the use of dolphins and other marine mammals for entertainment and stopped commercial breeding in captivity, except in limited conservation cases.
At the time, the decision was celebrated internationally as a major step for marine mammal welfare.
But hundreds of dolphins were already living in dolphinariums across the country. A year later, many are still there.
Mexico has not yet completed the detailed technical rules needed to decide how captive dolphins should be assessed, moved and housed under the new system.
The nine dolphins in Cancún
The Cancún case has become one of the clearest examples of that uncertainty.
Authorities confirmed nine dolphins were still at the facility after videos began circulating online showing the animals inside the closed attraction.
One of them is Mincho, a dolphin whose welfare had already attracted official attention following an injury during a previous show. He leaped into the air during a show but when he landed he crashed head first into a concrete platform.
World Animal Protection has since been working with Mexico’s environmental enforcement authority, PROFEPA, to assess the health and welfare of the nine dolphins.
Some of the dolphins reportedly have chronic health problems, making their future even more complicated. Simply opening the gates and releasing them into the Caribbean Sea is not considered a safe option after years or decades of dependence on human care.
Why can’t the dolphins simply be released?
Dolphins born or kept for many years in captivity may not know how to find enough food, avoid dangers or survive without human support.
Instead, animal welfare organisations are pushing for some dolphins to eventually be moved to seaside sanctuaries or sea pens.
These are enclosed areas of natural seawater where dolphins would have much more space and a more natural environment, while still receiving food and veterinary care.
Mexico does not currently have an up-to-date public count of all captive marine mammals. In 2018, official figures recorded 229 dolphins in 33 facilities. Animal welfare groups now estimate that around 350 marine mammals may remain in captivity.
Support The Animal Reader
The Animal Reader is funded almost entirely by its readers. Donations help pay freelance journalists around the world who tell stories about animals that rarely make the news.
