Editing Marine mammal (section)

=====Pinnipeds=====
[[File:Zalophus californianus -Blackpool Zoo, Lancashire, England -female-8a.jpg|thumb|left|upright|A sea lion trained to balance a ball on its nose|alt=A grey sea lion with white whiskers balancing a ball that resembles a blue-and-red basketball]]

The large size and playfulness of pinnipeds make them popular attractions. Some exhibits have rocky backgrounds with artificial haul-out sites and a pool, while others have pens with small rocky, elevated shelters where the animals can dive into their pools. More elaborate exhibits contain deep pools that can be viewed underwater with rock-mimicking cement as haul-out areas. The most common pinniped species kept in captivity is the California sea lion as it is abundant and easy to train.<ref name=zoo/> These animals are used to perform tricks and entertain visitors.<ref>{{cite book |last=Nowak, R. M. |year=2003 |title=Walker's Marine Mammals of the World |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|pages=80–83 |isbn=978-0-8018-7343-0|oclc=51087217}}</ref> Other species popularly kept in captivity include the grey seal and harbor seal. Larger animals like walruses and Steller sea lions are much less common.<ref name=zoo>{{cite book |last=Larson, S. |year=2001 |title=Encyclopedia of the World's Zoos |volume=3 |contribution=Seals and Sea lions |pages=1148–1150 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |editor=Bell, C. E. |isbn=978-1-57958-174-9|oclc=42213993}}</ref> Pinnipeds are popular attractions because they are "[[disneyfied]]", and consequently, people often anthropomorphize them with a curious, funny, or playful nature.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Sigurrós Björg|last=Sigvaldadóttir|year=2012|title=Seals as Humans—Ideas of Anthropomorphism and Disneyfication|journal=Selasetur Working Paper|number=107|url=http://www.selasetur.is/images/VIGNIR/workingpapers/no.%20%200107%20%20seals%20as%20humans%20-%20ideas%20of%20anthropomorphism%20and%20disneyfication.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915225953/http://www.selasetur.is/images/VIGNIR/workingpapers/no.%20%200107%20%20seals%20as%20humans%20-%20ideas%20of%20anthropomorphism%20and%20disneyfication.pdf|archive-date=2016-09-15}}</ref>

Some organizations, such as the [[Humane Society of the United States]] and World Animal Protection, object to keeping pinnipeds and other marine mammals in captivity. They state that the exhibits could not be large enough to house animals that have evolved to be migratory, and a pool could never replace the size and biodiversity of the ocean. They also oppose using sea lions for entertainment, claiming the tricks performed are "exaggerated variations of their natural behaviors" and distract the audience from the animal's unnatural environment.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity |publisher=[[Humane Society of the United States]] and [[World Animal Protection]] |pages=3, 18 |url=http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/marine_mammals/case_against_marine_captivity.pdf |access-date=May 30, 2012 |archive-date=September 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930105929/http://www.humanesociety.org/assets/pdfs/marine_mammals/case_against_marine_captivity.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>