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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an adorable little “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “constant motion” and moves like a worm. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been caught in a disagreement between a shuttered park, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the heated debate over their fate often fails to consider the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in enclosed habitats, have been closely studied by the humans who interact with them daily.

After the Canadian government prevented the transfer of the belugas to China, the embattled facility near the famous falls where they are held stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the federal government pays for the expense of their survival. The nation’s fisheries minister has refused that request, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious circumstance.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, problem solving and communal behavior suggest they are remarkably smart creatures – something Kristy Burgess observed directly.

She spent several years as a beluga trainer, a role that involved earning the trust of the aquatic animals.

“Establishing those relationships over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the beginning, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so extraordinary and rewarding.”

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 deep bond for two female belugas with different temperaments.

“Eve chose me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Both changed the way I view connection.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales progressed against a context of increasing societal concern to their captivity.

During her time at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the facility ascribes to natural mortality, but which activists say reflects the poor conditions in which they were housed.

The facility did not admit visitors to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the closure. “Concrete is falling apart from the tanks because they’re degrading and not being repaired. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and navigate with chunks in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but in the past claimed: “The whales … get far higher quality health care and constant supervision than any human in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was dismissed from the park in early March following the demise of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the facility thought particulars of the incident were disclosed to the news outlets and she was let go not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left her and staff members in despair. She says the facility’s threat to euthanize its whales is a leverage tool and is a “logistically impossible” task, adding any efforts to euthanize even a individual beluga would require “considerable staff”, trucks and machinery.

“There’s no way in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

Burgess supports calls for the whales to be taken promptly from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and shrinking team.

In the autumn, the nation’s fisheries minister denied a request to send the whales to China.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a perpetual existence in confinement and a return to display for amusement,” the official commented. “As the public, we know that whales should be in the wild, not in tanks for our enjoyment. I could not in ethical standing authorize an relocation that would continue the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the official’s comments reveal a more general misunderstanding of the realities of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have lived entirely in captivity and they will need constant supervision for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers attempt to find a answer, proposals have been put forward, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a primary resource of nourishment for local populations.

A proposed sanctuary in the region of eastern Canada, which now received regulatory clearance, has proven highly debated. The future facility, which includes extensive space of enclosed sea water, is not yet built. Proponents remain positive that it could in time represent a sustainable answer for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among caretakers she’s spoken with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “simply an trial” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the possibility of a sanctuary represents a changing attitudes away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable solution in the near future.

An official, head of the plan, said the location will simulate the intellectual stimulation and feeding regimen the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|