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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an cute small “ham sandwich”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a large but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “endless energy” and moves like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been entangled in a disagreement between a shuttered park, local and national governments and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned debate over their destiny often overlooks the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been thoroughly researched by the humans who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities disallowed the export of the belugas to China, the struggling attraction near the famous falls where they are kept threatened to end their lives unless the government pays for the cost of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has denied that demand, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Researchers say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior indicate they are highly cognitive animals – something a former trainer learned personally.

Burgess spent three years as a beluga trainer, a role that involved building relationships 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. “Eventually, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so surprised by the subtleties and idiosyncrasies in their personalities. She developed a special affection for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“Eve accepted me. The other required effort,” she said. “Both transformed the way I perceive bonding.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

Her connection with the whales developed against a context of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her three years at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s single orca, the orca, died. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a statistic which the facility attributes to natural mortality, but which campaigners say reflects the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not operate to the visitors over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand results of the shutdown. “Concrete is breaking off from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being repaired. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and swim around with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The facility did not comment to a questionnaire, but previously stated: “The whales … get far better health care and constant attention than any individual in the Britain, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the park in recent months following the passing of a beluga, an ailing beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the park suspected information of the incident were shared to the media and she was released soon after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ future has left Burgess and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable personnel”, vehicles and specialized tools.

“There’s no way in hell the caretakers 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 reduced personnel.

In late September, the nation’s government official denied a request to send the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the proposal would have meant a perpetual existence in enclosure and a reversion to display for amusement,” the minister stated. “As society, we know that marine mammals should be in the sea, not in pools for our enjoyment. I could not in good conscience permit an export that would prolong the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the minister’s remarks reveal a more general incorrect perception of the realities of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

“The society needs to grasp these are whales that have spent their whole lives in enclosed habitats and they will need constant supervision for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers work to find a solution, suggestions have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. An idea called for the belugas to be freed into the natural habitat of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Inuit communities.

A planned refuge in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received official endorsement, has been highly debated. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, is not yet built. Proponents remain positive that it could in time represent a long term solution for a number of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Others say the prospect of a protected habitat reflects a worldwide trend away from animal displays and could represent a viable approach in the near future.

An official, head of the initiative, said the site will simulate the mental engagement and diet the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the medical condition of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|