Keiko’s Out To Lunch When It Comes To Hunting Trainers Prod Captive Whale Into Catching Own Fish

The romantic notion of “Free Willy” star Keiko swimming back to the sea just like in the movies has run up against a hard reality: The killer whale doesn’t have much of a killer instinct.

Keiko is so lousy at catching fish that even some of his most optimistic handlers acknowledge that the whale who has lived nearly his entire life in a pool may never be able to survive in the wild.

He is getting lessons from humans in catching fish. And in the first peek to be given to a reporter, Keiko managed to catch a couple, with a trainer using a dog whistle, hand signals and clapping to point him to his prey.

But for the most part, the black-and-white beast watched meal after meal flutter by.

“He may never reach the wild. This may not succeed,” said Nolan Harvey, curator of marine mammals of the Free Willy Keiko Foundation.

Regardless of whether his hunting abilities improve, the foundation still plans to take Keiko later this year to an enclosed bay pen in the North Atlantic where he would continue to be fed.

Two years ago, schoolchildren inspired by the movie “Free Willy” helped raise money to move the ailing killer whale from a cramped Mexico City aquarium to a spacious pool here at the Oregon Coast Aquarium in hopes of getting him healthy enough for a return to the open sea.

His health did indeed improve, helped along with daily hand feedings of 300 pounds of restaurant-quality fresh fish.

To get him ready for the wild, however, the hand feeding stopped abruptly a couple of months ago and trainers began dropping dead fish into the tank, then stunned fish that fluttered in the water. The sessions with live fish began several weeks ago.

Critics say Keiko’s lack of hunting ability isn’t surprising because the whale has spent 18 of his 20 years in captivity.

“I don’t think it’s fair and humane to the animal to try this operation just to make a few people happy,” said Brad Andrews, vice president of zoological operations at Sea World in Orlando, Fla. Sea World’s theme parks around the country have 19 killer whales.

Diane Hammond, spokeswoman for the foundation, said they believe Keiko would still be much happier in an ocean pen, even if he had to spend the rest of his days there.