About Winston (SWC-OO-7601)Winston
was part of the infamous capture of
August 8, 1970.
He
was soon sold to a marine park in England
called Windsor Safari Park where he resided for 6 years. His name was
Ramu but was later changed to Winston when he moved to Sea World; this
may be due to the fact Sea World already had a Ramu in their care.
Winston was a very protective orca and he was also one of the most aggressive orcas in captivity where he attacked at least three trainers. Not long after arriving in his new home, he fascinated many people during show presentations. Like every orca, Winston was fairly intelligent; he often cancelled shows by doing his own thing. He either lay down on the bottom of the pool or just stayed at the side of the pool. He also started a game, in which he tried to "attack" his trainers by suddenly coming out of the water but this behaviour could be corrected soon after Winston began by using the 'Head in mouth' method; this was one of the ways how trainers build their trust up with the orcas.
Winston was a young male at capture but he soon outgrew his tiny pool in England. As a result, he was purchased by Sea World to join their breeding programme. He left his former home on October 17, 1976 and arrived at California, where he met two other orcas, Kona* and Kilroy*. Kona passed away the following year but shortly after three new orcas arrived Kenau*, Kandu V* and Canuck II*. The females were put with Winston and all three participated in shows.
Winston was with many orcas that he could breed with and when three girls (Katina, Kenau, Kandu V) reached sexual maturity in 1984, he successfully mated with them. In 1985 his first daughter Kalina* was born to Katina, she was the first orca to be born and raised in captivity successfully but unfortunately pased away in October 2010 at the age of 25. Kenau gave birth to a second daughter in January 1986, sadly the calf passed away some days later; Kandu V's calf was a stillborn.
Unfortunately Winston never got the chance to see any of his calves growing up. He died on April 29, 1986 from a heart failure at 23:30 PDT. After his death, Winston's family grew almost every year. Although just Kalina survived, she gave birth to four orcas and Winston even became a great-grandfather when Kalia, Halyn* and Adán were born.
Winston was a very protective orca and he was also one of the most aggressive orcas in captivity where he attacked at least three trainers. Not long after arriving in his new home, he fascinated many people during show presentations. Like every orca, Winston was fairly intelligent; he often cancelled shows by doing his own thing. He either lay down on the bottom of the pool or just stayed at the side of the pool. He also started a game, in which he tried to "attack" his trainers by suddenly coming out of the water but this behaviour could be corrected soon after Winston began by using the 'Head in mouth' method; this was one of the ways how trainers build their trust up with the orcas.
Winston was a young male at capture but he soon outgrew his tiny pool in England. As a result, he was purchased by Sea World to join their breeding programme. He left his former home on October 17, 1976 and arrived at California, where he met two other orcas, Kona* and Kilroy*. Kona passed away the following year but shortly after three new orcas arrived Kenau*, Kandu V* and Canuck II*. The females were put with Winston and all three participated in shows.
Winston was with many orcas that he could breed with and when three girls (Katina, Kenau, Kandu V) reached sexual maturity in 1984, he successfully mated with them. In 1985 his first daughter Kalina* was born to Katina, she was the first orca to be born and raised in captivity successfully but unfortunately pased away in October 2010 at the age of 25. Kenau gave birth to a second daughter in January 1986, sadly the calf passed away some days later; Kandu V's calf was a stillborn.
Unfortunately Winston never got the chance to see any of his calves growing up. He died on April 29, 1986 from a heart failure at 23:30 PDT. After his death, Winston's family grew almost every year. Although just Kalina survived, she gave birth to four orcas and Winston even became a great-grandfather when Kalia, Halyn* and Adán were born.
- Winston means "Joy stone" in Old English
- Winston is pronouced as "WIN-stun"
- Blood Type: 100% Southern Resident
Relatives
& Offspring| Family | Southern Resident Orcas |
| Offspring: |
1985
Kalina* 1986 Baby Shamu II* SWC-OO-U8601* |
| 2nd Generation | Keet, Keto, Tuar, Skyla, |
| 3rd Generation | Kalia, Halyn* Adán |
Transfers| August 8, 1970 - 1970 | Penn Cove Holding Pen | |
| 1970 - October 17, 1976 | Winsdor Safari Park | |
| October 17, 1976 - April 29, 1986 | Sea World San Diego |
