Keto (pronounced KEE-toh or KEH-toh) was a 29-year-old male hybrid killer whale who lived at Loro Parque. He was born tail-first on June 17th, 1995, at SeaWorld Orlando. His mother was Kalina, a 50% Southern resident, 50% Icelandic killer whale, and his father was Kotar, an Icelandic killer whale, making Keto 75% Icelandic, 25% Southern resident. He was one of the few killer whales to have lived at all four SeaWorld parks in the United States, including the now closed SeaWorld Aurora. Keto fathered three calves: Adán and Victoria, who were born to Keto’s half-niece Kohana and are 6.25% inbred, and Ula, who was born to Morgan. Keto was described as a dominant whale.

Early Life[]

Keto was born on June 17th to mother Kalina and father Kotar at SeaWorld Orlando in 1995. He was born tail first and is Kalina's second calf. Kalina showed good maternal instincts towards him when he was born. As he got older, Keto was nicknamed 'punk' by his trainers because of his disruptive and rebellious behavior. Due to this reason, Keto was transferred to SeaWorld San Diego in 1999, then four years old, to correct his behavior.

Life at the SeaWorld parks[]

On arrival in SeaWorld San Diego, Keto met his full blooded brother, Keet, for the very first time. The two got along very well. Keto and Keet stayed at the San Diego park for 9 months, and on April 15th 2000, they were both transferred to the now-closed SeaWorld Ohio park (also known as SeaWorld Aurora), along with Sumar, another whale who resided at SeaWorld San Diego at that time. When the summer season ended, Keto was transferred a third time to SeaWorld San Antonio, leaving his brother Keet behind. Keto arrived in Texas on February 18th, 2001.

At SeaWorld San Antonio Keto met a female named Kayla. Due to the displaced social structure that was happening after the death of the matriarch, Haida II, Keto grew very attached to Kayla and would often display dominant behaviors towards other male killer whales, especially Kyuquot, when paired with her. His dominant behaviors continued when Tekoa and Tuar, two whales from Orlando, arrived at the park.

At the age of 10, Keto was transferred for the fourth and final time to Loro Parque, a small zoo located in Tenerife, Spain, on a breeding loan. Keto was transferred with three other whales: Tekoa, Kohana and Skyla. Despite being sent there on a breeding loan, Keto was related to both Skyla, who was his half sister, and Kohana, who was his niece.

Life at Loro Parque[]

Keto arrived at Loro Parque on February 13, 2006. Shortly after arriving, Keto ingested pieces of Metflex, a substance used to waterproof the tanks at Orca Ocean. An endoscopy was subsequently preformed on Keto. A video recorded of the procedure surfaced shortly after showing Keto raised on a rising-platform in the medical pool thrashing while his trainers attempt to preform the endoscopy.

Keto was described as unusually dominant for a male killer whale. After his arrival at Loro Parque in 2006, Keto became very close to both Kohana and Skyla and was often paired with the two females in and out of shows. Skyla and Kohana both passed away in 2021 and 2022 respectively, leaving behind only four killer whales (including Keto) at the park.

Since his birth, Keto was involved in a number of incidents (see list 'Behavioral Incidents' below), most notably the death of Senior Trainer Alexis Martinez.

Despite his dominance and behavioral record, Keto was a very gentle and soft-mannered killer whale that was often paired up with new trainers as a 'beginner' whale because of his patient and calm demeanor.

Calves[]

Keto fathered three calves in his lifetime. The first being Adán, a male born in 2010 to Kohana. His second calf, Victoria (or Vicky), a female born in 2012 to Kohana. His third and final calf Ula, was also a female and born in 2018 to Morgan. Both Victoria and Ula have since passed away while Adán remains at Loro Parque to this day.

In 2021, in a documentary produced by Zembla highlighting Morgan's life, Loro Parque stated that they intended to continue breeding their killer whales, whether it may be through AI or naturally. Keto is the only male to have sired any calves at Loro Parque, fathering three offspring in the span of eight years.

Illness[]

On November 20th, 2024, Loro Parque posted a statement on their Facebook page stating that Keto "has been very unwell for several weeks."^[1] They assured readers that the park's veterinary specialists had been working tirelessly to ensure Keto would make a full recovery. Despite their valiant efforts, Keto succumbed to his illness two days later.

Death[]

On November 22nd, 2024, Loro Parque announced in a statement on their social medias that Keto had passed away. A necropsy was carried out by a team of veterinarians from the University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA) of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) on November 23rd to determine his exact cause of death, and the nature of his illness. Before the necropsy commenced, the team conducting the necropsy paid their respects to Keto by performing a Māori ritual. Keto was 6 meters long and weighed approximately 4.5 tons at the time of his death.[1] The results of his necropsy are currently pending. He leaves behind his son, Adán, and two other killer whales, Morgan and Tekoa, at Loro Parque.

Behavioral Incidents[]

• In September of 1998, 3 year old Keto pushed his trainer around the pool, open-mouthed.^[2]
• In March 1999, just days after his transfer from Florida, Keto swam into his trainer open-mouthed.
• In December of 1999, Keto snapped at his trainer during a training session.
• In August of 2002, Keto swam into his trainer open-mouthed once again.
• In September of 2009, an incident between Keto and trainer Brian Rokeach was noted by fellow trainer Alexis Martinez.
• On December 24th 2009, 29-year-old Alexis Martínez had been killed by Keto during a training session. The accident occurred at 10:30 am during the first training session for the Christmas Special show planned for the New Year. The other 7 trainers were also present in the training session. Alexis was hit by Keto, and his death was caused by drowning because he was under the water unconscious for several minutes before he could be rescued. The autopsy report on Martínez was telling and states bluntly that his was a "violent death." It describes multiple cuts and bruises, the collapse of both lungs, fractures of the ribs and sternum, a lacerated liver, severely damaged vital organs, and puncture marks "consistent with the teeth of an orca." It concludes that the immediate cause of death was fluid in the lungs (i.e., drowning) but that the fundamental cause was "mechanical asphyxiation due to compression and crushing of the thoracic abdomen with injuries to the vital organs." In other words, Keto must have slammed into Martínez with such force that he caved in his chest.^[3]

Family Tree[]

Trivia[]

• Keto's name originates from the ancient Greek word "kētŏs," meaning large sea monster.
• One of Keto's nicknames is "Oslo," which he was sometimes called by his trainers and fans. His fish buckets were labeled "O" instead of "K," his actual initial, likely to avoid confusion with the name Kohana. It is unknown where the nickname "Oslo" originates from or why he was given this nickname. Another, less-commonly used nickname of his was "Kiro."
• Keto was 25% Southern Resident through his mother Kalina.

Galleries[]

• Photos of Keto

• Videos of Keto

References[]