The killer whale, known as the orca, Lolita can now return to the ocean off the coast of the Pacific Northwest, in the area where her 93-year-old mother still lives after 52 years in captivity at the Miami Aquarium.

Activists have won a decades-long battle to free Lolita, also known as Tokitae or Toki, who was taken from the wild and brought to the Miami Marine Aquarium in 1970. Since then, the 57-year-old killer whale has lived and played in what has been described as the smallest captive killer whale tank in North America.

Although Lolita’s health has deteriorated over the years, experts say the whale is in surprisingly good health, outliving her husband, who died of a brain aneurysm in 1980 after hitting his head repeatedly on an enclosure.

“Every day is a miracle,” said Howard Garrett, a whale researcher and Orca Network activist who has fought for Lolita’s release since 1995, and continued, “I think her mental health keeps her physical health in good shape. She is not withdrawn, not neurotic, and she does not have stereotyped behaviors that suggest any kind of brain damage associated with bondage.”

A USDA report released last year criticized the Miami Aquarium’s care of the animal, saying it is being fed less than the recommended amount and not getting enough water (how marine mammals get water from fish for their water needs) . There were also concerns that the Training Commissioner was dictating the inclusion of fast swims and long jumps in training and shows for this aged whale. It was also found that Toki repeatedly struck her lower jaw, probably against the inferior groove/septum, while swimming fast.

The whale will be under 24/7 supervision until it acclimates to the new environment. “Employees of the Oceanarium are already preparing her for the trip,” the administration said.

Dolphin became the owner of the Oceanarium in 2021. It manages approximately 27 other parks and habitats in Mexico, Argentina, the Caribbean and Italy.