What will become of the wild animals in the circuses and dolphinariums?

An acrobat from the Cirque Grüss performs a number with an elephant on November 26, 2003 under the circus Grüss big top, on the Saint-Cloud lawn, in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris.

(Photo illustration) -

• Around 500 wild animals are currently held by French circuses, to which must be added six elephants, two hippos, zebras and even ostriches.

  There are also four killer whales and about twenty dolphins in the dolphinariums.

• The end announced this Tuesday by Barara Pompili of the presentations of wild animals in circuses and the detention of killer whales and dolphins in dolphinariums implies having to find a way out for all these animals

• A subject much more complicated than it seems, and which will have to be spread out over time.

This is the question that comes immediately after Barbara Pompili's speech on Tuesday morning.

The Minister for Ecological Transition has announced the end of the presentation of wild animals in traveling circuses.

Likewise, the reproduction and introduction of new killer whales and dolphins in dolphinariums will be excluded.

But what will become of the animals that currently live there?

The question is more complex than it appears.

We must already know their number.

Cyrille Emery, general delegate of the Association for the Defense of Family Circuses, to which two thirds of the 150 French circuses belong, has around 500 wild animals - mainly lions and tigers - under French capitals today.

"We must add six elephants and two hippos, Jumbo and Bouli, and a few dozen primates, a few zebras, five to ten ostriches…"

As for killer whales, only the Marineland dolphinarium in Antibes has them in France.

There are currently four.

Finally, Marineland is currently home to twelve dolphins, Planète Sauvage (Loire-Atlantique) nine, while Parc Asterix says it has five.

The "ambitious track" of a marine sanctuary

In the end, the list of animals looking for a way out is long.

There is no question, of course, that "these animals, accustomed to captivity, are simply released into the natural environment, they would not survive it", excludes Barbara Pompili, who invites solutions to be found on a case-by-case basis.

For killer whales and dolphins, the minister evokes an "ambitious and exciting" track which would aim to create a marine sanctuary to accommodate these captive animals.

A solution that Anissa Putois, campaigner for Peta (For an ethics in the treatment of animals) France, also sees favorably.

“A marine sanctuary already exists in Australia, another is under construction in North America, and yet another in Central Europe,” she explains.

These are demarcated areas, often near the coasts, where these animals can evolve in much larger spaces, close to their natural habitat, while remaining cared for and supervised when necessary.

And then, they finally evolve as they please, without obligation to participate in shows and having more freedom to choose their social groups.

"

This successful transition will take time, warns Barbara Pompili.

The minister estimates at four years the time necessary to find a solution for the four orcas still in captivity in France and between seven and ten years for the dolphins.

Zoos, a trail to forget?

The transition could be even longer for circus animals.

More complex in any case, if only because there are more of them.

Among the avenues opened by Barbara Pompili, that of welcoming some of these animals to zoos.

A perspective that Alexis Lécu, scientific director of the Paris zoological park, like Rodolphe Delort, president of the Association of French zoological parks, both say is very limited.

"The world of zoos has conservation objectives given to it by the State and which require animals whose genetics are guaranteed", recalls the first.

“This is not the case with circus animals.

For example, in the Paris Zoological Park, we have Atlas lions which are extremely close, genetically, to their ancestors who once lived in the wild.

If tomorrow I had to take three more circus lions, we would be doing away with all our work to keep this subspecies as "pure" as possible.

"

Rodolphe Delort adds the lack of space in the existing zoos, which would make "impossible the possibility of accommodating these animals".

"And the places that remain, they must be kept as a priority for animals that have a conservation issue," he says.

No more places in shelters and sanctuaries?

There are many shelters and sanctuaries for wild animals.

For example, in France, the Tonga refuge, near the Zoological Space of Saint-Martin la Plaine (Loire) or the zoo refuge de la Tanière, near Chartres (Eure-et-Loir).

“But they are few and already full,” indicates Alexis Lécu.

We already regularly send wild animals seized by the authorities for lack of detention authorization, poor conditions of detention or ill treatment.

"

"If these two centers are able to take care of three or four wild animals each, it will already be very good," says Rodolphe Delort.

We therefore remain far from the account.

»It might be possible to supplement with other similar structures present in Europe.

"But that will not allow the spontaneous absorption of hundreds of animals", continues Alexis Lécu.

The dilemma is the same for elephants, hippos, primates and other wild animals currently in French circuses.

That circuses simply settle down?

Another lead would then be that these animals today in circuses simply stay with their current owners until their beautiful death.

This possibility was in any case not ruled out by Barbara Pompili on Tuesday, "on condition that these circus artists abandon roaming - settling from city to city - and settle down".

Perhaps the best option, confirms Alexis Lécu.

“This will allow a smooth transition for these circuses as long as they take care of them.

This will also prevent animals from the trauma of the change of owner and environment ... "" All that is debatable, which is why we want to take the time to make this transition ", continues the Minister of Ecological Transition.

To date, there is also no date set for circus artists to put an end to the performance of wild animals in traveling circuses.

Barbara Pompili says she just has "a fork in mind", without further details.

There is indeed a risk in wanting to go too fast, considers Alexis Lécu: "That small circuses which do not have the means to settle down and to maintain their wild animals come to sell them to the first comer and that they go to countries where the regulations on keeping wildlife are much less strict.

"

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