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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable small “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but very loyal companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a struggle between a defunct facility, public officials and welfare campaigners.

But those most familiar with the whales say the impassioned controversy over their fate often overlooks the complexities of the whales who, after growing up in captivity, have been closely studied by the people who interact with them daily.

After the Canadian government prevented the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling attraction near the famous falls where they are housed threatened to euthanize them unless the federal government pays for the upkeep of keeping them alive. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Experts say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, problem solving and group interactions point to they are highly cognitive mammals – something a former trainer discovered personally.

Burgess spent a significant period as a beluga trainer, a role that involved gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Building up those relationships over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of care. At the beginning, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the details and unique traits in their personalities. She developed a particular love for two female belugas with different natures.

“Eve accepted me. The other required effort,” she said. “Both changed the way I perceive bonding.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her interaction with the whales progressed against a background of increasing societal concern to their captivity.

During her tenure at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, passed away. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a statistic which the park attributes to expected lifespan, but which campaigners say points to the poor conditions in which they were maintained.

The park did not operate to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes results of the cessation. “Concrete is breaking off from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being repaired. The whales are exploratory and so they grab fragments and move about with pieces in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

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

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was dismissed from the facility in the spring following the demise of Eos, an unwell beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the facility suspected particulars of the death were leaked to the news outlets and she was fired shortly thereafter.

The ambiguity over the whales’ outcome has left her and staff members in despair. She says the park’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a single beluga would require “significant staff”, trucks and heavy equipment.

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

She supports requests for the whales to be transferred promptly from the facility, with its failing enclosures and dwindling staff.

In the autumn, the nation’s government official rejected a bid to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the application would have meant a perpetual situation in enclosure and a reversion to public entertainment,” the minister stated. “As the public, we know that marine mammals are meant for the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience permit an relocation that would continue the conditions these belugas have endured.”

But the former trainer said the official’s comments reflect a wider misunderstanding of the realities of life for belugas raised in confinement.

“The public needs to understand 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 comprehend that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘end operations’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As authorities struggle to find a answer, ideas have emerged, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of the Arctic – where whales are a primary resource of sustenance for Inuit communities.

A suggested refuge in the province of eastern Canada, which has received regulatory clearance, has been contentious. The prospective facility, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a permanent resolution for a number of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s spoken with, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Different voices say the idea of a refuge reflects a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible plan in the short term.

The project lead, head of the sanctuary project, said the location will replicate the cognitive activities and diet the whales get from trainers, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|