🔗 Share this article

Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an charming little “sweetheart”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a big but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canadian entertainment facility have become pawns in a tussle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated controversy over their future often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the national authorities blocked the transfer of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are kept warned to put them down unless the federal government covers the cost of keeping them alive. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that request, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Scientists say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior suggest they are highly cognitive mammals – something one caretaker discovered personally.

Burgess spent several years as a whale caretaker, a job that entailed gaining confidence of the sea creatures.

“Establishing those relationships over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so magical and fulfilling.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the nuances and unique traits in their dispositions. She developed a special affection for a pair of whales with opposing temperaments.

“Eve chose me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Both changed the way I perceive relationships.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her relationship with the whales developed against a background of increasing societal concern to their captivity.

During her three years at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s one killer whale, Kiska, died. In total, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since 2019, a number which the facility ascribes to expected lifespan, but which activists say reflects the substandard environment in which they were maintained.

The facility did not open to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes results of the closure. “Concrete is falling apart from the pools because they’re degrading and not being maintained. The whales are exploratory and so they grab fragments and navigate with chunks in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not reply to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality medical attention and 24/7 attention than any person in the Britain, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the facility in recent months following the demise of Eos, an unwell beluga the employees had to euthanize. She said the park believed details of the death were leaked to the press and she was fired shortly thereafter.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and other caretakers in anguish. She says the park’s warning to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” endeavor, adding any plans to humanely kill even a one beluga would require “immense staff”, vehicles and machinery.

“It’s impossible in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

She advocates for calls for the whales to be transferred promptly from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and shrinking team.

In late September, the nation’s government official turned down a bid to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Granting the request would have meant a continued existence in enclosure and a return to performance for audiences,” the official stated. “As the public, we know that marine mammals belong in the wild, not in tanks for our amusement. I could not in good conscience approve an export that would perpetuate the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks reveal a broader incorrect perception of the facts of existence for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to realize these are whales that have existed solely in enclosed habitats and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “The public just don’t realize that it’s not as easy as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As authorities work to find a resolution, proposals have surfaced, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a primary resource of nourishment for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested protected area in the province of eastern Canada, which has received regulatory clearance, has been contentious. The future site, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain positive that it could ultimately represent a sustainable resolution for a number of the whales.

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

Others say the possibility of a sanctuary represents a broader global shift away from animal displays and could represent a workable plan in the coming months.

Charles Vinick, head of the initiative, said the facility will replicate the cognitive activities and nutrition the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a much larger area. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|