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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an adorable small “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “constant motion” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been caught in a tussle between a closed attraction, public officials and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned debate over their fate often fails to consider the nuances of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the national authorities blocked the export of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling facility near the famous falls where they are housed threatened to end their lives unless the government covers the expense of their care. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Researchers say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and communal behavior indicate they are highly cognitive animals – something Kristy Burgess observed directly.

She spent three years as a whale caretaker, a position that entailed building relationships of the aquatic animals.

“Building up those relationships over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of care. At the beginning, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nevertheless amazed by the details and unique traits in their dispositions. She cultivated a special affection for two female belugas with contrasting personalities.

“Eve accepted me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Each altered the way I understand connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Her relationship with the whales developed against a background of rising activist criticism to their confinement.

During her three years at the park, seven belugas and the park’s single orca, the orca, passed away. In all, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the park ascribes to natural mortality, but which advocates say points to the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The park did not open to the guests over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes effects of the shutdown. “Structural materials is breaking off from the tanks because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and navigate with chunks in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not reply to a questionnaire, but earlier stated: “The whales … get far better medical attention and around the clock care than any human in the United Kingdom, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was dismissed from the facility in the spring following the demise of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the park suspected details of the death were shared to the press and she was let go shortly thereafter.

The uncertainty over the whales’ future has left Burgess and staff members in distress. She says the park’s threat to end the lives of its whales is a leverage tool and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any efforts to euthanize even a single beluga would require “considerable manpower”, equipment and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess backs demands for the whales to be taken right away from the facility, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

In late September, Canada’s fisheries minister denied a request to transfer the whales to China.

“Granting the application would have meant a continued life in confinement and a return to public entertainment,” the minister commented. “As society, we know that whales are meant for the wild, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience permit an relocation that would perpetuate the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the minister’s comments reveal a wider misunderstanding of the facts of living conditions for belugas born in captivity.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have spent their whole lives in confinement and they will need constant supervision for the rest of their years,” she said. “The public just don’t understand that it’s not as simple as saying ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As decision makers struggle to find a solution, suggestions have emerged, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the natural habitat of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed protected area in the province of Nova Scotia, which now received regulatory clearance, has been most controversial. The prospective site, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Supporters remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a long term resolution for some of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among staff she’s consulted, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “merely an trial” in the whales’ well-being.

Others say the possibility of a refuge indicates a worldwide trend away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible approach in the coming months.

The project lead, director of the sanctuary project, said the site will replicate the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales receive from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger space. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|