Landry’s Inc. is Served Notice of Intent to Sue for Endangered Species Act Violations

Contact: media@aldf.org

Houston, TX — Today, Houston’s Downtown Aquarium and Landry’s Inc. were served with a notice of intent to sue for violations of the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). The notice, served by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and Irvine & Conner PLLC, alleges harm and harassment to a federally listed species: four tigers, who are kept in deplorable conditions at the Aquarium.

In the notice, the Animal Legal Defense Fund reiterates its offer to rehome the tigers to a reputable, accredited sanctuary at no cost to Landry’s. If Landry’s declines this offer, the group will proceed with litigation after 60 days.

In December 2004, Landry’s transported four white tigers to its Downtown Aquarium restaurant and amusement park complex in Houston, Texas. For the last 12 years, Landry’s has deprived these four tigers—named Nero, Marina, Coral, and Reef—of any access to sunlight, fresh air, or natural surfaces. These species-inappropriate living conditions violate the ESA, which has protected tigers since 1970.

In the wild, tigers cover a range of up to 40 square miles. In contrast, at the Downtown Aquarium, the tigers’ entire world is limited to a few hundred square feet. The tigers alternate their time between the concrete “Maharaja’s Temple” on display to the public and a small metal cage out of the public’s sight. At no point do the tigers have the opportunity to run, jump, or engage in the full range of their natural behaviors.

“The dungeon-like conditions that the tigers are forced to endure at Houston’s Downtown Aquarium harm their physical health and psychological wellbeing, and deny them much that is natural and important to a tiger,” says renowned big cat veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Conrad. “It is cruel to confine complex, roaming carnivores such as tigers to a tiny, dark, artificial, unenriched enclosure where they never see any daylight, much less bask in sunshine, and are at risk for serious long term, debilitating injuries from being forced to live on slippery, unyielding concrete their entire lives.”

The tigers’ living conditions starkly contrast with the decades-long trend to place captive tigers in more natural habitats, such as the tiger habitat at the Houston Zoo. Of the more than 100 Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited facilities housing tigers in the United States, only one other facility does not have an outdoor exhibit for the tigers: the Downtown Aquarium in Denver, also owned by Landry’s.

“Tigers are complex apex predators with specific biological, environmental, and enrichment needs,” says Animal Legal Defense Fund Executive Director Stephen Wells. “Landry’s, Inc. should stick to the restaurant business and leave the housing of tigers to those who are able to provide big cats with proper care and naturalistic habitats rather than sacrificing the wellbeing of an endangered species for the sake of tourist dollars.”

By forcing these tigers to live in what amounts to a concrete dungeon, Landry’s has profited financially, but caused the tigers serious mental and physical harm. Keeping the tigers at the Downtown Aquarium advances no conservation purpose under the ESA. Retiring the tigers to a sanctuary will guarantee that the tigers may spend the rest of their lives in the species-appropriate conditions that they need and deserve.