Yes it’s true. The orca shows in San Diego, California will not longer exist, though there is still a catch to this move.

After the crucial documentary “Blackfish” came out in 2013,  it caused a huge decrease in audience at Sea World, most notably in San Diego. This caused the CEO of SeaWorld, Joel Manby, to announce that the orca shows in San Diego will close by the end of 2016.

But don’t start opening that bottle of apple cider just yet, folks. Joel Manby also announced that even though shows will end by the end of next year, they will open a new show described as a “new orca experience” with a “strong conservation message” in 2017.

Manby said that the new show will loosen its tricks with the killer whales and make the shows with more of  the “natural behavior of whales” but this does not faze activists.

Jared Goodman of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals expressed his opinion about this move.

“An end to SeaWorld’s tawdry circus-style shows is inevitable and necessary, but it’s captivity that denies these far-ranging orcas everything that is natural and important to them,” he said. “This move is like no longer whipping lions in a circus act but keeping them locked inside cages for life.”