Free Morgan Foundation

These are the ID photos of Group P, Morgans extended or closely related family.

Heike Vester and Filipa Samarra identified Group P by comparing Morgans distinctive calls with the recent call type catalogue of wild Norwegian killer whales developed by Heike Vester, and came to the conclusion that Morgan is likely either from group P or a group closely related to group P. You can download the full report here.

If you have photos of the North Atlantic Killer Whale population or if you see NA orca in the future, please compare these ID photos with yours and if you think there is a match please report this to the Free Morgan Foundation at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The ID photos are made by Heike Vester, who is doing research on killer whales and pilot whales in Norway. For more information about her work please go to http://www.ocean-sounds.com

THE TRUE STORY OF KEIKO AND THE CASE FOR MORGAN THE ORCA’S RELEASE

The recent Dutch court decision involving the captive orca named Morgan has caused much consternation and discussion among marine biologists, and the public at large. In its decision, the court ruled against a proposal to rehabilitate and release Morgan and ordered her transfer to Loro Parque, an amusement park in Spain, where she will be used for captive breeding.

The court’s decision was based, in part, on its erroneous belief that Morgan’s rehabilitation was not possible and would endanger her life. In support of her release, attorneys and expert witnesses discussed the rehabilitation and release of the orca Keiko, the star of the 1993 hit film "Free Willy". Due to court time constraints, attorneys supporting Morgan’s release were unable to present the recent documentary film, Keiko The Untold Story as evidence in support of Morgan’s release.

This is unfortunate. Keiko's rehabilitation and return to the wild is cited by the marine park industry and the media as a failed project and is often given as the reason captive orcas should not be released. Factual errors regarding Keiko’s return to the wild abound. Even after the court’s decision, news articles about Keiko continued to mislead the public. For example, in its November 29 article entitled, “Morgan The Killer Whale Transferred from Netherlands to Spain”, the internet newspaper HuffPost Green (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/morgan-killer-whale-transferred_n_1118403.html) stated:

"Real life releases have a mixed record at best, however. Keiko, the animal that starred in "Free Willy", was released in Icelandic waters after 20 years in captivity. He died, apparently of pneumonia, after surviving two months on his own and swimming about 870 miles (1,400 kilometers) to Norway."

A Fall from Freedom!

The untold story behind the captive whale and dolphin industry

View the full movie here

After the Free Morgan Foundation had given the experts of the Dolphinarium additional information regarding collected acoustic information which reveals that Morgan is related to the Norwegian P pod Morgan’s natal group or a related kin group and information which indicate that killer whales groups are now sighted frequently near Vesterålen in northern Norway during summer, four experts changed their opinion and stated that Morgan is a prime candidate for release.

"Given this new information, I now believe that rehabilitation back to the wild for Morgan is potentially feasible and an effort to accomplish this warrants serious consideration."

John K.B. Ford, PhD Head, Cetacean Research Program Conservation Biology Section

"Given this new information, I believe that rehabilitation back to the wild for Morgan is potentially feasible."

Christophe Guinet Directeur de recherche CEBC-CNRS