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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an charming little “playful character”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a big but fiercely protective companion. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have become pawns in a disagreement between a closed attraction, public officials and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned debate over their future often fails to consider the complexities of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the people who work with them regularly.

After the Canadian government blocked the export of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling attraction near Niagara Falls where they are kept threatened to put them down unless the government covers the cost of their care. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious situation.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills point to they are remarkably smart animals – something one caretaker discovered personally.

Burgess spent a significant period as a whale caretaker, a position that involved gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Building up those bonds over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of affection. At the outset, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Over time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and fulfilling.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the details and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She developed a special affection for Eve and Cleopatra with different personalities.

“One whale chose me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “They transformed the way I perceive connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s relationship with the whales evolved against a context of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her three years at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s one killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the facility links to age-related causes, but which campaigners say points to the substandard environment 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 effects of the cessation. “Structural materials is deteriorating from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being repaired. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and move about with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The facility did not reply to a request for comment, but earlier asserted: “The whales … get far better veterinary services and constant attention than any individual in the United Kingdom, or elsewhere.”

Fate in Limbo and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was dismissed from the facility in recent months following the passing of a beluga, an ailing beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the facility thought particulars of the incident were shared to the press and she was let go soon after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ future has left Burgess and other caretakers in anguish. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “practically unfeasible” task, adding any attempts to euthanize even a single beluga would require “immense staff”, equipment and heavy equipment.

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

She backs demands for the whales to be taken promptly from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and reduced personnel.

In the autumn, the nation’s fisheries minister rejected a proposal to send the whales to China.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a continued situation in enclosure and a return to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As the public, we know that whales should be in the sea, not in tanks for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an transfer that would continue the treatment these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks reflect a wider misunderstanding of the realities of living conditions for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in enclosed habitats and they will need human care for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As officials attempt to find a resolution, 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 wilds of the Arctic – where whales are a primary resource of nourishment for Indigenous peoples.

A planned sanctuary in the province of Nova Scotia, which has received regulatory clearance, has proven contentious. The planned location, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Supporters remain optimistic that it could eventually represent a long term resolution for a number of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s spoken with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the possibility of a refuge reflects a worldwide trend away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible approach in the short term.

Charles Vinick, leader of the sanctuary project, said the facility will simulate the intellectual stimulation and diet the whales receive from caretakers, albeit in a much larger space. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|