MIAMI – A U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection in January found multiple repeat violations at the troubled Miami Seaquarium, according to a newly-obtained report.
Local 10 News received the report from the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, which conducted a routine inspection at the Virginia Key facility on Jan. 9.
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The park has been beset with animal health and structural safety concerns after a series of USDA inspections.
In the January report, inspectors found four violations related to facility safety and one pertaining to water quality issues.
They noted a penguin enclosure with peeling paint and rusted, sharp metal edges that could pose a hazard to the birds. Additionally, they noted the continued presence of mold on the ceiling which had not yet been addressed.
They also found a dolphin pool in disrepair, defects in a perimeter fence that allowed stray cats — and potentially trespassers — access to the facility and a bird enclosure with “roughened and jagged surfaces” from rust that could injure the animals.
The rust in that enclosure also caused “bubbling and flaking paint,” the report states.
USDA staff also took issue with the water quality in the park’s sea lion pools.
“The facility is still struggling with coliform counts that are excessively high,” inspectors noted. “When the numbers are this high, divers are not permitted to dive and clean pools; the pools must be dropped to bring numbers back to safe levels.”
The coliform levels in the pools “pose a risk to the health of these animals,” inspectors said.
Read the inspection report:
The park has also lost its American Humane Association certification. Its lease agreement with Miami-Dade County requires it to maintain that certification.
“Miami Seaquarium is not currently certified by American Humane,” an AHA spokesperson told Local 10 News.
In September, the facility chose not to renew accreditation for its trainers, which allowed it to bypass an International Marine Animal Trainers’ Association inspection.
To reinstate their accreditation, Miami Seaquarium would be required to submit a new application and undergo a comprehensive on-site audit with IMATA inspectors.
“Without this accreditation, there is no check that the trainers are able to do what they are supposed to or are doing what they are supposed to with the marine animals that live in the Seaquarium,” Attorney Daniel Wehking, a former animal caretaker and diver at the Seaquarium, said in a September interview.
Lease agreement:
On its website, the Miami Seaquarium lists the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums as its last remaining accreditation.
A Seaquarium spokesperson sent a statement to Local 10 News following the latest findings.
“At Miami Seaquarium, every member of our staff is committed to the welfare and wellbeing of the animals in our care,” the spokesperson said. “Miami Seaquarium takes every accreditation seriously and recognizes the importance of the accrediting bodies as third-party controllers of the best practices in animal care and welfare.”
The spokesperson added, “All accreditations are under review during certain periods and we are in this process. We would like to remind the public that we are in compliance with AWA regulations, as stated by USDA.”
Local 10 News has contacted the Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department and the county mayor’s office for comment on the latest report and loss of accreditation, as well as for an update on how much the facility still owes it in unpaid rent.
We were awaiting responses as of late Tuesday morning.