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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable small “playful character”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but very loyal companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “constant motion” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a heart of gold.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been entangled in a tussle between a closed attraction, public officials and animal rights activists.

But those closest to the whales say the intense debate over their future often overlooks the individual traits of the whales who, after spending their lives in confinement, have been closely studied by the people who see them each day.

After the federal government prevented the transfer of the belugas to China, the embattled attraction near Niagara Falls where they are housed threatened to end their lives unless the authorities pays for the cost of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that demand, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable position.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Researchers say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their mimicry abilities, cognitive challenges and communal behavior suggest they are remarkably smart animals – something a former trainer observed first-hand.

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

“Establishing those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of care. At the beginning, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so surprised by the nuances and unique traits in their dispositions. She developed a special affection for Eve and Cleopatra with opposing natures.

“Eve chose me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “They altered the way I perceive relationships.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Burgess’s connection with the whales developed against a backdrop of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her tenure at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, passed away. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the park ascribes to expected lifespan, but which activists say reflects the poor conditions in which they were kept.

The park did not operate to the visitors over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes effects of the closure. “Structural materials is deteriorating from the tanks because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. The whales are inquisitive and so they pick it up and move about with pieces in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not comment to a questionnaire, but earlier claimed: “The whales … get far higher quality health care and around the clock attention than any individual in the United Kingdom, or other places.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was fired from the facility in the spring following the demise of a beluga, an sick beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the park suspected particulars of the incident were shared to the press and she was released not long after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ future has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the facility’s threat to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any efforts to humanely kill even a single beluga would require “immense manpower”, vehicles and heavy equipment.

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

She advocates for demands for the whales to be transferred right away from the park, with its deteriorating pools and dwindling staff.

In recent months, Canada’s fisheries minister rejected a proposal to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the request would have meant a continued life in enclosure and a return to performance for audiences,” the official commented. “As Canadians, we know that marine mammals are meant for the wild, not in pools for our enjoyment. I could not in clear conscience permit an relocation that would continue the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the minister’s remarks indicate a broader incorrect perception of the realities of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely in confinement and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t comprehend that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As authorities work to find a answer, ideas have emerged, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the natural habitat of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of food for Inuit communities.

A suggested refuge in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received official endorsement, has shown to be highly debated. The future site, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain optimistic that it could in time represent a long term resolution for eight of the whales.

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

Some experts say the idea of a refuge reflects a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a viable plan in the short term.

The project lead, director of the initiative, said the facility will simulate the intellectual stimulation and feeding regimen the whales get from specialists, albeit in a much larger environment. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|