🔗 Share this article

The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an cute small “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a sizeable but fiercely protective companion. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and sways like a worm. Lillooet is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been entangled in a disagreement between a defunct facility, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the intense debate over their future often fails to consider the individual traits of the whales who, after spending their lives in captivity, have been carefully observed by the people who see them each day.

After the Canadian government blocked the export of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling attraction near the famous falls where they are held stated it would consider to end their lives unless the authorities pays for the upkeep of their care. Canada’s marine resources official has refused that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an increasingly precarious situation.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Researchers say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and group interactions indicate they are highly cognitive creatures – something one caretaker observed directly.

She spent three years as a marine mammal specialist, a role that involved gaining confidence of the sea creatures.

“Building up those connections over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Over time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so extraordinary and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so astounded by the details and quirks in their personalities. She formed a particular love for a pair of whales with different personalities.

“One whale selected me. The other demanded work,” she said. “Both transformed the way I understand connection.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her interaction with the whales evolved against a context of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her time at the facility, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, died. In all, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since 2019, a statistic which the facility attributes to age-related causes, but which advocates say indicates the inadequate care in which they were maintained.

The park did not admit visitors to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she observed directly results of the shutdown. “Concrete is falling apart from the tanks because they’re degrading and not being maintained. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and move about with pieces in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but previously stated: “The whales … receive far higher quality health care and constant care than any individual in the Britain, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in early March following the demise of a beluga, an unwell beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the park believed particulars of the incident were leaked to the press and she was let go soon after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left her and staff members in despair. She says the facility’s warning to end the lives of its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable personnel”, trucks and heavy equipment.

“It cannot happen in hell the staff would ever do it,” she said.

Burgess advocates for calls for the whales to be taken immediately from the park, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

In recent months, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a bid to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the request would have meant a continued existence in confinement and a return to display for amusement,” the official stated. “As Canadians, we know that marine mammals are meant for the wild, not in tanks for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience authorize an relocation that would continue the situation these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the minister’s comments reveal a broader misunderstanding of the facts of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have existed solely in captivity and they will need constant supervision for the rest of their years,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As officials work to find a answer, ideas have been put forward, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A planned protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which has received official endorsement, has been most controversial. The planned location, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, remains undeveloped. Supporters remain positive that it could ultimately represent a long term answer for eight of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an experiment” in the whales’ future.

Others say the idea of a sanctuary reflects a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable approach in the short term.

The project lead, leader of the initiative, said the location will replicate the mental engagement and nutrition the whales receive from caretakers, albeit in a more expansive environment. He said after the health of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|