Lolita is a 57-year old orca that lived in a 80-foot deep and 35-foot wide tank along with Li’i as Lolita’s dolphin companion, which recently moved to San Antonio shortly after Lolita had passed. Lolita was the only calf that survived when six orca calves were separated and sold to various marine parks. The Miami-Dade County Mayor had made a statement about the process of Lolita’s release to new ownership of the Aquarium to The Dolphin Company and once the ownership was transferred they gave Lolita medical care. Lolita had performed 3 tricks everyday for 45 years in the smallest aquarium pool in North America. After 50 years of being held captive, Lolita had retired and continued to be stuck in the 80-feet deep and 35-feet wide tank while an orca grew up to 35-feet-long. Around 1980, Lolita’s companion Hugo had passed away from a brain aneurysm which was caused by self-inflicted head injuries that were repeated, ever since Hugo’s death Lolita hasn’t been able to be accompanied by another orca.

There were talks, announcements, and statements about Lolita being released back into the wild but sadly it never happened. In 2012 the Animal Legal Defense Fund, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and Orca Network had filed a lawsuit towards the U.S. Department of Agriculture saying that the agency was wrong to perpetually renew the Seaquarium’s license to show Lolita for display due to the AWA regulations that had been broken three times. Law stated that the orca’s tank should at least be 48-feet wide which is twice the size of an orca. The tank is 80-feet-deep which concerns most animal rights activists because an orca can dive over 1,000 feet deep. Also, the diameter of Lolita’s tank of water, otherwise known as the MHD, was much too small than the required amount should have been.
Lolita’s tank contained 35 ft of MHD but required 48 ft of MHD. Seaquarium had many complaints, lawsuits, etc; but did not do anything about it. Lolita died August 18, in 2023 due to “Progression of multiple chronic conditions including renal disease and pneumonia.” The members of the Lummi Nation tribe had cremated Lolita and spread her ashes in the ocean where she was born.