🔗 Share this article

The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an charming small “playful character”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but guardian-like friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a heart of gold.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have been entangled in a struggle between a closed attraction, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense debate over their fate often overlooks the nuances of the whales who, after living their entire lives in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the humans who see them each day.

After the Canadian government blocked the sale of the belugas to China, the controversial attraction near Niagara Falls where they are held threatened to euthanize them unless the government pays for the upkeep of their survival. Canada’s fisheries minister has denied that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Scientists say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their vocal imitation skills, problem solving and communal behavior point to they are deeply intelligent animals – something Kristy Burgess learned directly.

She spent a significant period as a whale caretaker, a role that required earning the trust of the sea creatures.

“Developing 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. “Eventually, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so magical and fulfilling.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the subtleties and quirks in their characters. She cultivated a deep bond for Eve and Cleopatra with opposing temperaments.

“Eve chose me. The other demanded work,” she said. “Each changed the way I view bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s connection with the whales developed against a context of increasing societal concern to their enclosure.

During her tenure at the park, seven belugas and the park’s one killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a statistic which the facility ascribes to expected lifespan, but which advocates say points to the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not open to the public over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand consequences of the closure. “Concrete is breaking off from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and swim around with pieces in their jaws. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not respond to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … get far superior medical attention and constant supervision than any person in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the facility in early March following the death of Eos, an ailing beluga the park staff had to put down. She said the park thought details of the incident were shared to the press and she was let go not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and current and former trainers in despair. She says the park’s warning to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any efforts to put down even a individual beluga would require “significant personnel”, vehicles and specialized tools.

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

Burgess backs requests for the whales to be taken right away from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and shrinking team.

In late September, Canada’s fisheries minister turned down a request to export the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the proposal would have meant a ongoing life in captivity and a return to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As society, we know that whales are meant for the ocean, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience authorize an transfer that would continue the treatment these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s remarks reveal a broader incorrect perception of the circumstances of life for belugas raised in confinement.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have existed solely in confinement and they will need constant supervision for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as easy as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers struggle to find a solution, ideas have been put forward, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be let go into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a primary resource of food for local populations.

A suggested sanctuary in the province of eastern Canada, which has received official endorsement, has been highly debated. The future site, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Proponents remain hopeful that it could in time represent a permanent answer for some of the whales.

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

Different voices say the idea of a protected habitat reflects a changing attitudes away from animal displays and could represent a viable approach in the short term.

An official, leader of the sanctuary project, said the site will mimic the intellectual stimulation and nutrition the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger area. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|