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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an adorable little “playful character”. The whale Orion – called “Onion” – is a large but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

Thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a struggle between a closed attraction, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the intense controversy over their future often overlooks the complexities of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the Canadian government disallowed the transfer of the belugas to China, the struggling amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are housed threatened to end their lives unless the government pays for the expense of keeping them alive. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that request, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable situation.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Scientists say that beluga whales’ neuroanatomy, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and communal behavior suggest they are remarkably smart animals – something a former trainer observed personally.

She spent a significant period as a beluga trainer, a role that involved gaining confidence of the sea creatures.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of care. At the outset, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “In time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless amazed by the nuances and quirks in their dispositions. She formed a deep bond for Eve and Cleopatra with opposing personalities.

“Eve selected me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Each altered the way I understand connection.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales progressed against a background of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her tenure at the park, seven belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the facility links to age-related causes, but which advocates say indicates the poor conditions in which they were maintained.

The park did not operate to the visitors over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes effects of the shutdown. “Structural materials is breaking off from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not comment to a questionnaire, but in the past asserted: “The whales … receive far superior medical attention and around the clock care than any person in the UK, or other places.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was fired from the facility in recent months following the passing of a beluga, an unwell beluga the employees had to euthanize. She said the park thought details of the incident were disclosed to the media and she was released shortly thereafter.

The ambiguity over the whales’ outcome has left her and other caretakers in distress. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable personnel”, vehicles and specialized tools.

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

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

In late September, Canada’s government official rejected a request to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the application would have meant a continued situation in captivity and a reversion to public entertainment,” the minister wrote. “As Canadians, we know that marine mammals should be in the ocean, not in enclosures for our enjoyment. I could not in good conscience permit an export that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s statements reveal a wider lack of awareness of the circumstances of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers work to find a resolution, ideas have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of the Arctic – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A planned protected area in the region of Nova Scotia, which has received government approval, has been contentious. The prospective site, which includes extensive space of protected cove, doesn’t yet exist. Proponents remain hopeful that it could in time represent a sustainable solution for a number of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among caretakers she’s consulted, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an untested concept” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the idea of a refuge indicates a changing attitudes away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a viable approach in the short term.

The project lead, director of the plan, said the facility will replicate the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales get from trainers, albeit in a much larger area. He said after the health of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|