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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an cute small “playful character”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a large but guardian-like companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “constant motion” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canadian entertainment facility have been entangled in a struggle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the heated controversy over their destiny often fails to consider the individual traits of the whales who, after growing up in captivity, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the federal government prevented the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are housed warned to euthanize them unless the government covers the expense of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that request, placing the thirty whales in an increasingly precarious position.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their vocal imitation skills, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are highly cognitive creatures – something one caretaker learned first-hand.

Burgess spent several years as a whale caretaker, a role that required gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Establishing those connections over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of love. At the outset, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “In time, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so extraordinary and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the details and quirks in their dispositions. She formed a deep bond for a pair of whales with opposing natures.

“One whale accepted me. The other required effort,” she said. “Both transformed the way I perceive connection.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her interaction with the whales developed against a backdrop of rising activist criticism to their confinement.

During her tenure at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s one killer whale, the orca, died. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the park ascribes to natural mortality, but which advocates say reflects the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not open to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she observed directly consequences of the shutdown. “Concrete is breaking off from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being maintained. The whales are curious and so they grab fragments and move about with fragments in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not respond to a inquiry, but in the past stated: “The whales … obtain far superior medical attention and constant supervision than any individual in the United Kingdom, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was terminated from the park in early March following the death of Eos, an unwell beluga the employees had to euthanize. She said the park believed information of the death were shared to the news outlets and she was fired not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left Burgess and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the park’s warning to end the lives of its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any attempts to euthanize even a one beluga would require “considerable staff”, trucks and specialized tools.

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

Burgess backs requests for the whales to be removed right away from the park, with its crumbling tanks and reduced personnel.

In recent months, Canada’s government official denied a request to send the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the application would have meant a ongoing existence in enclosure and a reversion to display for amusement,” the official stated. “As the public, we know that whales should be in the wild, not in pools for our entertainment. I could not in ethical standing permit an export that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s statements reflect a wider lack of awareness of the facts of living conditions for belugas born in captivity.

“The society needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely in confinement 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 ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers work to find a answer, suggestions have surfaced, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Inuit communities.

A suggested sanctuary in the province of eastern Canada, which has received regulatory clearance, has shown to be most controversial. The prospective location, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a sustainable answer for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s discussed with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an trial” in the whales’ future.

Different voices say the possibility of a protected habitat indicates a changing attitudes away from animal displays and could represent a workable plan in the short term.

Charles Vinick, head of the plan, said the site will simulate the cognitive activities and diet the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a much larger environment. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|