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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an adorable small “playful character”. Orion – called “Onion” – is a sizeable but guardian-like companion. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and sways like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canadian entertainment facility have become pawns in a disagreement between a closed attraction, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the intense debate over their future often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the humans who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities prevented the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled attraction near Niagara Falls where they are kept threatened to end their lives unless the authorities pays for the upkeep of keeping them alive. Canada’s fisheries minister has denied that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and group interactions indicate they are highly cognitive creatures – something a former trainer discovered personally.

She spent three years as a marine mammal specialist, a job that involved gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Establishing those relationships over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of care. At the start, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nevertheless astounded by the details and unique traits in their dispositions. She developed a particular love for Eve and Cleopatra with different personalities.

“One whale chose me. The other required effort,” she said. “They transformed the way I perceive bonding.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

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

During her time at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, succumbed. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the park attributes to age-related causes, but which advocates say reflects the inadequate care in which they were maintained.

The park did not open to the guests over the summer, but the former trainer says she observed directly effects of the shutdown. “Concrete is falling apart from the pools because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are exploratory and so they grab fragments and swim around with chunks in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but previously claimed: “The whales … receive far superior veterinary services and around the clock supervision than any person in the Britain, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the park in early March following the death of Eos, an ailing beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the park thought information of the death were leaked to the press and she was fired soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and staff members in anguish. She says the facility’s ultimatum to kill its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “significant manpower”, trucks and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess supports demands for the whales to be taken promptly from the park, with its failing enclosures and shrinking team.

In recent months, Canada’s government official rejected a request to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a ongoing situation in enclosure and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As the public, we know that marine mammals should be in the ocean, not in enclosures for our entertainment. I could not in ethical standing approve an export that would continue the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the minister’s statements reveal a broader lack of awareness of the realities of living conditions for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The society needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in confinement and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “The public just don’t comprehend that it’s not as simple as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers work to find a answer, suggestions have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a key source of food for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested protected area in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received government approval, has shown to be contentious. The prospective site, which includes extensive space of protected cove, is not yet built. Proponents remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a long term resolution for some of the whales.

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

Some experts say the idea of a protected habitat represents a worldwide trend away from animal displays and could represent a feasible solution in the coming months.

Charles Vinick, head of the initiative, said the facility will replicate the intellectual stimulation and nutrition the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|