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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an adorable small “playful character”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a big but guardian-like friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have been caught in a struggle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense controversy over their destiny often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in enclosed habitats, have been closely studied by the humans who see them each day.

After the federal government blocked the export of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are kept warned to euthanize them unless the authorities pays for the expense of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable position.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, problem solving and social skills suggest they are remarkably smart creatures – something Kristy Burgess learned directly.

Burgess spent three years as a marine mammal specialist, a position that involved building relationships of the marine predators.

“Building up those connections over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of affection. At the outset, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was even so astounded by the nuances and quirks in their personalities. She developed a particular love for Eve and Cleopatra with contrasting personalities.

“Eve accepted me. The other demanded work,” she said. “Both changed the way I understand relationships.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

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

During her tenure at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the park links to natural mortality, but which activists say reflects the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The facility did not open to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she observed directly effects of the closure. “Structural materials is breaking off from the pools because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and swim around with chunks in their jaws. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … obtain far better veterinary services and constant care than any human in the United Kingdom, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was dismissed from the facility in recent months following the passing of a beluga, an ailing beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the facility believed information of the incident were leaked to the press and she was fired shortly thereafter.

The uncertainty over the whales’ outcome has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the park’s threat to kill its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any efforts to humanely kill even a one beluga would require “immense personnel”, trucks and specialized tools.

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

Burgess supports demands for the whales to be taken immediately from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and reduced personnel.

In the autumn, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a bid to send the whales to an overseas location.

“Granting the application would have meant a perpetual existence in confinement and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister wrote. “As Canadians, we know that belugas belong in the ocean, not in enclosures for our entertainment. I could not in good conscience approve an export that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reveal a more general lack of awareness of the circumstances of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have existed solely in confinement and they will need ongoing assistance for the rest of their years,” she said. “The public just don’t understand that it’s not as simple as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As officials work to find a solution, proposals have emerged, some of which have minimal feasibility. An idea called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of the Arctic – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested refuge in the region of Nova Scotia, which has received official endorsement, has proven most controversial. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Advocates remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a long term answer for eight of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among caretakers she’s spoken with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an untested concept” in the whales’ future.

Others say the idea of a refuge represents a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a workable plan in the near future.

An official, director of the sanctuary project, said the site will simulate the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales obtain from specialists, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|