ORLANDO, Fla. _ Tilikum, the SeaWorld killer whale that inspired the anti-captivity documentary "Blackfish" after killing an Orlando trainer, has died.
SeaWorld said Tilikum had been battling a serious and persistent lung infection.
Acquired by SeaWorld in 1992, Tilikum helped SeaWorld grow its captive orca collection by fathering more than a dozen offspring. But Tilikum also triggered a downward spiral for SeaWorld after the massive orca killed trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010, battering and drowning her.
That triggered a torrent of controversy and led to the documentary "Blackfish." The 2013 movie took an in-depth look at Tilikum's life and argued that the stress of captivity turned him into a killer. Three years after the film's release, SeaWorld is still dealing with the financial and public relations effects from it.
To opponents of captivity, Tilikum's story represents everything that's wrong with keeping orcas in tanks.
SeaWorld said in a statement that Tilikum had received great care at SeaWorld. But it also acknowledged the orca's difficult past.
"Tilikum's life will always be inextricably connected with the loss of our dear friend and colleague, Dawn Brancheau," SeaWorld said in a statement. "While we all experienced profound sadness about that loss, we continued to offer Tilikum the best care possible, each and every day, from the country's leading experts in marine mammals."
SeaWorld has maintained that it kept Tilikum � nicknamed "Tilly" _ stimulated through training, and with toys including oversized plastic disks, blocks of ice and large balls.
Tilikum was captured from the waters near Iceland as a youngster and sent to the now-defunct Sealand of the Pacific in Victoria, British Columbia. There, "Blackfish" and "Death at SeaWorld" chronicle that dominant females attacked him and he was locked in an underwater cage every night.
In 1991, Tilikum and two other orcas drowned trainer Keltie Byrne. According to federal documents, Sealand put the three whales up for sale about seven months later. SeaWorld Orlando had asked to receive Tilikum because the park said its staff could provide veterinary care the whale would not be able to receive in Canada.
According to PBS' "Frontline," the females were pregnant and had begun being aggressive to Tilikum. They drove him into a small medical holding tank, the size of which was considered substandard, but it was feared that keeping him in the main tank might be dangerous .
In 1999, the naked body of Daniel Dukes, who had apparently sneaked into SeaWorld after hours for a swim, was found dead on Tilikum's back.
Authorities later concluded Dukes likely suffered hypothermia and drowned, but they said it also appeared Tilikum bit the man's body and tore off his swimming trunks after he had died.
Because of Tilikum's size � he was SeaWorld's largest at an average weight of nearly 6 tons � and his dangerous reputation, SeaWorld took precautions with him.
Trainers could not swim with him as they often did with the resort's seven other orcas. About a dozen of 28 handlers were trained to work with him from the edge of the pools. He was often kept separate from the other whales.
After Brancheau's death, SeaWorld put changes into effect that included requiring trainers to stay farther away from Tilikum when working with him _ for example, with high-pressure hoses instead of rubbing him by hand. However, Tilikum went back to performing the year after Brancheau's death, and he was appearing in shows up until nearly the time that he died.
Trainers no longer perform in the water with whales � a recommendation that OSHA made in the wake of Brancheau's death. SeaWorld Entertainment has decided not to go to the U.S. Supreme Court to appeal the OSHA citation barring trainers from performing with its killer whales. SeaWorld had considered appealing but ultimately decided against it.
After "Blackfish," the company's attendance, revenue and stock price all declined. The company got a new chief executive officer who is trying to stabilize the company by focusing on its rescue and conservation efforts. SeaWorld also announced last year it would phase out its killer whale program by not breeding.
A necropsy will be performed. Causes of death are voluntarily reported to the federal government. SeaWorld is not required to make the results public. The Marine Mammal Protection Act was changed in 1994 and no longer required those to be public record.
