🔗 Share this article

Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable little “ham sandwich”. Orion – called “Onion” – is a sizeable but fiercely protective friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a kind nature.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a tussle between a shuttered park, public officials and animal rights activists.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated debate over their fate often overlooks the complexities of the whales who, after growing up in captivity, have been closely studied by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the federal government prevented the export of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are housed warned to euthanize them unless the authorities pays for the cost of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that demand, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills suggest they are deeply intelligent animals – something a former trainer observed directly.

Burgess spent several years as a beluga trainer, a role that entailed gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of affection. At the beginning, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so wonderful and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so amazed by the subtleties and idiosyncrasies in their personalities. She formed a particular love for Eve and Cleopatra with different natures.

“Eve accepted me. The other required effort,” she said. “Both altered the way I understand relationships.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

Her connection with the whales progressed against a context of rising activist criticism to their enclosure.

During her tenure at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s single orca, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a statistic which the park links to expected lifespan, but which campaigners say points to the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The park did not open to the public over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the cessation. “Structural materials is breaking off from the tanks because they’re in disrepair and not being maintained. The whales are exploratory and so they pick it up and navigate with chunks in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a inquiry, but in the past claimed: “The whales … receive far superior health care and constant care than any individual in the United Kingdom, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the park in recent months following the passing of Eos, an unwell beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the park suspected information of the death were disclosed to the press and she was fired soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the facility’s ultimatum to kill its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any efforts to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable staff”, equipment and machinery.

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

Burgess backs requests for the whales to be removed promptly from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and dwindling staff.

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

“Granting the request would have meant a ongoing situation in confinement and a reversion to public entertainment,” the minister commented. “As society, we know that marine mammals belong in the ocean, not in pools for our amusement. I could not in ethical standing approve an relocation that would perpetuate the conditions these belugas have suffered.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reveal a more general lack of awareness of the realities of existence for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have spent their whole lives in confinement and they will need human care for the rest of their years,” she said. “The public just don’t understand that it’s not as easy as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As authorities attempt to find a answer, suggestions have emerged, some of which have questionable practicality. An idea called for the belugas to be freed into the wilds of the Arctic – where whales are a important part of nourishment for local populations.

A proposed protected area in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received regulatory clearance, has proven highly debated. The planned facility, which includes a large area of protected cove, is not yet built. Supporters remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a long term answer for some of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among staff she’s discussed with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an experiment” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the prospect of a sanctuary represents a broader global shift away from animal displays and could represent a workable solution in the coming months.

Charles Vinick, director of the sanctuary project, said the site will replicate the mental engagement and diet the whales get from trainers, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|