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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an adorable small “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a large but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canadian amusement park have been caught in a disagreement between a defunct facility, public officials and advocacy groups.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense debate over their destiny often overlooks the individual traits of the whales who, after growing up in captivity, have been carefully observed by the humans who work with them regularly.

After the Canadian government disallowed the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are held warned to end their lives unless the federal government funds the upkeep of keeping them alive. Canada’s fisheries minister has refused that request, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious circumstance.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills point to they are highly cognitive mammals – something one caretaker learned first-hand.

Burgess spent three years as a whale caretaker, a role that involved earning the trust of the aquatic animals.

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

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so amazed by the nuances and idiosyncrasies in their characters. She developed a special affection for Eve and Cleopatra with contrasting natures.

“Eve accepted me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Each transformed the way I perceive connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales progressed against a context of rising activist criticism to their captivity.

During her time at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, succumbed. In all, 19 belugas have perished at the park since 2019, a toll which the park ascribes to age-related causes, but which advocates say points to the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not admit visitors to the guests over the summer, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes effects of the shutdown. “Concrete is falling apart from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being repaired. The whales are exploratory and so they pick it up and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not comment to a inquiry, but earlier claimed: “The whales … receive far superior medical attention and 24/7 supervision than any individual in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was dismissed from the facility in early March following the demise of Eos, an ailing beluga the park staff had to put down. She said the park thought information of the incident were shared to the media and she was fired shortly thereafter.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left her and other caretakers in distress. She says the park’s threat to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any efforts to put down even a one beluga would require “significant personnel”, trucks and machinery.

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

Burgess backs requests for the whales to be taken promptly from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and reduced personnel.

In recent months, Canada’s fisheries minister turned down a request to export the whales to China.

“Granting the request would have meant a ongoing life in captivity and a reversion to public entertainment,” the official stated. “As the public, we know that marine mammals should be in the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience authorize an export that would perpetuate the conditions these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the minister’s statements reveal a wider lack of awareness of the circumstances of existence for belugas born in captivity.

“The people needs to grasp these are whales that have spent their whole lives in confinement and they will need human care for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as simple as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As officials work to find a answer, suggestions have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. An idea called for the belugas to be released into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a key source of food for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed protected area in the province of eastern Canada, which now received official endorsement, has proven contentious. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, is not yet built. Advocates remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a long term resolution for some of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an untested concept” in the whales’ future.

Different voices say the possibility of a refuge reflects a broader global shift away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a feasible solution in the coming months.

An official, head of the sanctuary project, said the location will replicate the mental engagement and feeding regimen the whales get from specialists, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|