Moana

Moana was a 12 year old male orca who was born at Marineland Antibes on March 16, 2011. His mother is Wikie and his father is Ulises. He passed away in October 2023.

Moana was the 3rd orca calf to be born as a result of artificial insemination. While his mother lived in France, his father lived at SeaWorld San Diego in the US. Initially, Antibes announced Moana was a female and held a poll to name him. In July 2011, it was announced he was actually a male, though Antibes kept the name.

Moana was extremely smart. Before he turned one, he could already do behaviors other orcas his age couldn't and does many behaviors that take others years to learn. Many of the behaviors he had learned by simply watching the other orcas at the park and doing what they do. Among these, he had learned to do back bows, underwater somersaults, a traveling breach and much more at a very early age. Many of these behaviors he wouldn't have been trained for until he was at least a few years old.

Moana could often be seen in the park's shows. He was independent from an early age, but was still close to his mom. As he became sexually mature, he wasn't grouped with his mom as often. In November 2013, Moana became a big brother when Wikie gave birth to her second calf, Keijo. He spent a lot of time with his mom, Keijo and uncle Inouk. In December 2014, Kalia gave birth to his younger sister, Amaya, at SeaWorld San Diego.

On the morning of October 18, 2023, Moana was found unresponsive in his tank. He had passed away during the night unexpectedly. It is unknown if he passed away on the 17th or 18th as he was seen alive by trainers on the night of the 17th. The park plans on conducting a necropsy. His cause of death is currently unknown.