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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an charming little “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a sizeable but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “constant motion” and moves like a worm. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have been entangled in a tussle between a defunct facility, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense controversy over their fate often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after spending their lives in confinement, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities disallowed the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the controversial facility near the famous falls where they are housed warned to end their lives unless the authorities pays for the upkeep of their survival. The nation’s marine resources official has refused that request, placing the thirty whales in an increasingly precarious situation.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and social skills suggest they are deeply intelligent creatures – something one caretaker learned first-hand.

Burgess spent several years as a marine mammal specialist, a job that entailed gaining confidence of the marine predators.

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

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nevertheless astounded by the nuances and quirks in their dispositions. She formed a special affection for two female belugas with contrasting temperaments.

“Eve chose me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Both changed the way I understand connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s connection with the whales developed 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, Kiska, succumbed. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the park links to age-related causes, but which campaigners say indicates the substandard environment in which they were maintained.

The park did not open to the guests over the summer, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes results of the cessation. “Concrete is falling apart from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they pick it up and swim around with fragments in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The facility did not respond to a request for comment, but earlier stated: “The whales … get far better medical attention and constant care than any person in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was terminated from the park in recent months following the passing of Eos, an sick beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the facility suspected particulars of the incident were disclosed to the news outlets and she was let go soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left her and other caretakers in anguish. She says the park’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any attempts to euthanize even a single beluga would require “immense personnel”, vehicles and heavy equipment.

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

She supports calls 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 turned down a bid to send the whales to China.

“Allowing the application would have meant a perpetual life in enclosure and a reversion to public entertainment,” the official commented. “As Canadians, we know that whales are meant for the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an relocation that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reflect a more general lack of awareness of the realities of existence for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely in enclosed habitats and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t realize that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As officials work to find a answer, suggestions have been put forward, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Inuit communities.

A suggested protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which now received official endorsement, has been most controversial. The prospective location, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, is not yet built. Proponents remain hopeful that it could eventually represent a long term answer for eight of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s consulted, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Different voices say the idea of a protected habitat indicates a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable approach in the near future.

The project lead, head of the sanctuary project, said the site will replicate the mental engagement and nutrition the whales get from trainers, albeit in a much larger area. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|