Lolita, a killer whale captured at Penn Cove off Whidbey Island in Washington State, is now a member of an endangered species along with her wild cousins.

The captive killer whale that's been performing for decades at the Miami Seaquarium was granted protection by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on Wednesday.

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Animal rights groups called it a victory and said the decision opens the way for them to argue that the whale's living conditions violate provisions of the federal endangered-species law.

"Now that Lolita is protected, a whole host of remedy is open to us to demand that Lolita be treated with respect," said Jessica Blome, an attorney with the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

Lolita is the last known survivor of the many orcas captured from the Salish Sea in 1970. She has lived since at the Miami Seaquarium. When Puget Sound orcas were later designated an endangered species, captive whales were excluded.

Activists say Lolita belongs in the wild, not a small pool, and should be returned to her home waters. They want her released into a protected marine pen near the San Juan Islands north of Seattle where she will be monitored and cared for until she can gradually reconnect with other wild orcas.

But the Miami Seaquarium didn't want to move the whale, according to Fisheries Service, a branch of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Activists rallied last month in both Miami and on Seattle's Alki beach in favor of releasing Lolita back into the wild.

TagsKiller Whale, Orca, killer whale Lolita, endangered species, Endangered Species Act, marine animal conservation, Ocean