The Xiaomeisha Sea World aquarium in China sparked outrage among visitors for displaying a whale shark when it reopened earlier this month, which turned out to be a robot.
After five years of renovation, tourists can expect to see different species, especially giant marine mammals. However, upon entering the enclosure, they realize that what they believed to be a whale shark was actually a mechanically controlled robot.
Faced with visitor dissatisfaction, the aquarium argued that its decision to choose robots over real specimens was not a misleading decision, but rather offered an ethical alternative.
The marine center added that trade in whale sharks is prohibited in China for conservation reasons, so the use of robots would allow them to display the animals without breaking regulations.
Despite these statements, internet users commented that they would rather not see “anything” than see a fake animal.
This dispute was added to by other controversies in Chinese tourist attractions, such as the case of the Taizhou Zoo which exhibited “pandas” which turned out to be painted chow chow dogs.
Related