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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an cute small “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a large but fiercely protective friend. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canadian amusement park have been caught in a tussle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned debate over their fate often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the people who see them each day.

After the national authorities disallowed the transfer of the belugas to China, the struggling facility near Niagara Falls where they are housed threatened to put them down unless the federal government funds the expense of their care. Canada’s marine resources official has rejected that request, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Scientists say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and social skills suggest they are remarkably smart animals – something Kristy Burgess learned directly.

Burgess spent three years as a beluga trainer, a position that required building relationships of the marine predators.

“Building up those bonds over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of care. At the outset, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the details and idiosyncrasies in their characters. She formed a particular love for Eve and Cleopatra with different temperaments.

“One whale selected me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “Each changed the way I perceive connection.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

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

During her three years at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s one killer whale, Kiska, passed away. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the park links to natural mortality, but which activists say points to the poor conditions in which they were housed.

The park did not admit visitors to the public over the summer, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand results of the closure. “Concrete is breaking off from the pools because they’re degrading and not being repaired. The whales are exploratory and so they take pieces and move about with chunks in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not comment to a request for comment, but earlier asserted: “The whales … get far superior veterinary services and around the clock attention than any individual in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was dismissed from the park in the spring following the demise of Eos, an unwell beluga the employees had to put down. She said the facility suspected information of the incident were shared to the press and she was let go not long after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left her and staff members in despair. She says the park’s ultimatum to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “extremely difficult” endeavor, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a single beluga would require “significant personnel”, vehicles and heavy equipment.

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

She supports calls for the whales to be taken promptly from the park, with its deteriorating pools and reduced personnel.

In late September, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a request to transfer the whales to China.

“Allowing the application would have meant a ongoing situation in enclosure and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister wrote. “As the public, we know that whales are meant for the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an transfer that would continue the conditions these belugas have suffered.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reveal a broader incorrect perception of the circumstances of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The people needs to understand these are whales that have existed solely in captivity and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as simple as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As authorities struggle to find a solution, ideas have surfaced, some of which have little basis in reality. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a key source of food for local populations.

A proposed sanctuary in the province of eastern Canada, which recently received regulatory clearance, has shown to be contentious. The future site, which includes a large area of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a permanent answer for eight of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among staff she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ well-being.

Others say the possibility of a protected habitat represents a worldwide trend away from captive facilities and could represent a workable approach in the coming months.

An official, head of the sanctuary project, said the location will replicate the cognitive activities and diet the whales obtain from specialists, albeit in a more expansive environment. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|