🔗 Share this article

Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an cute small “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a big but fiercely protective friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canadian entertainment facility have been entangled in a disagreement between a closed attraction, public officials and animal rights activists.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated debate over their destiny often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the people who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities blocked the transfer of the belugas to a foreign facility, the controversial attraction near Niagara Falls where they are held threatened to end their lives unless the federal government funds the cost of their survival. The nation’s marine resources official has refused that demand, placing the thirty whales in an increasingly precarious position.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Researchers say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are deeply intelligent mammals – something a former trainer discovered personally.

Burgess spent several years as a marine mammal specialist, a job that entailed gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of care. At the beginning, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the nuances and idiosyncrasies in their personalities. She cultivated a deep bond for Eve and Cleopatra with contrasting personalities.

“One whale selected me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “They altered the way I view relationships.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her interaction with the whales developed against a background of rising activist criticism to their enclosure.

During her tenure at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since 2019, a statistic which the facility ascribes to expected lifespan, but which campaigners say reflects the inadequate care in which they were maintained.

The facility did not operate to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes effects of the cessation. “Concrete is breaking off from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being repaired. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not comment to a request for comment, but in the past asserted: “The whales … receive far higher quality health care and constant care than any individual in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was dismissed from the facility in the spring following the passing of Eos, an sick beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the facility thought particulars of the death were shared to the press and she was released shortly thereafter.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left her and other caretakers in despair. She says the park’s threat to euthanize its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “logistically impossible” task, adding any attempts to euthanize even a individual beluga would require “significant manpower”, vehicles and machinery.

“There’s no way in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

She backs calls for the whales to be taken immediately from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and dwindling staff.

In recent months, the nation’s fisheries minister denied a proposal to export the whales to China.

“To approve the request would have meant a perpetual situation in enclosure and a return to display for amusement,” the minister wrote. “As the public, we know that belugas are meant for the wild, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an export that would prolong the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s statements reflect a broader incorrect perception of the facts of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have spent their whole lives in enclosed habitats and they will need human care for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as easy as saying ‘end operations’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As decision makers struggle to find a solution, ideas have surfaced, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of Canada’s north – where whales are a primary resource of food for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested refuge in the province of Nova Scotia, which has received official endorsement, has been highly debated. The prospective site, which includes extensive space of protected cove, remains undeveloped. Supporters remain hopeful that it could in time represent a permanent solution for a number of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s consulted, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an trial” in the whales’ fate.

Different voices say the prospect of a sanctuary reflects a broader global shift away from captive facilities and could represent a viable solution in the coming months.

The project lead, director of the initiative, said the facility will replicate the cognitive activities and diet the whales receive from specialists, albeit in a significantly bigger area. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|