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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an cute small “playful character”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a big but fiercely protective friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and moves like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a heart of gold.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canadian amusement park have been entangled in a disagreement between a defunct facility, government authorities and advocacy groups.

But those closest to the whales say the intense controversy over their future often fails to consider the nuances of the whales who, after spending their lives in confinement, have been closely studied by the people who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities prevented the sale of the belugas to China, the embattled facility near Niagara Falls where they are kept warned to euthanize them unless the government covers the expense of their care. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that demand, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious situation.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and communal behavior indicate they are remarkably smart mammals – something a former trainer discovered personally.

Burgess spent a significant period as a whale caretaker, a position that required earning the trust of the sea creatures.

“Developing those bonds over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of love. At the outset, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Over time, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nevertheless astounded by the nuances and quirks in their characters. She developed a particular love for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“Eve accepted me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Both transformed the way I view bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s interaction with the whales progressed against a backdrop of rising activist criticism to their confinement.

During her three years at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s one orca, the orca, succumbed. In all, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the park attributes to expected lifespan, but which campaigners say indicates the poor conditions in which they were kept.

The park did not open to the visitors over the recent season, but Burgess says she witnessed firsthand results of the closure. “Structural materials is breaking off from the tanks because they’re falling apart and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and swim around with chunks in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a questionnaire, but in the past claimed: “The whales … get far superior veterinary services and 24/7 attention than any person in the UK, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was fired from the park in early March following the demise of Eos, an ailing beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the facility believed particulars of the death were disclosed to the media and she was let go soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left Burgess and other caretakers in despair. She says the facility’s warning to end the lives of its whales is a leverage tool and is a “logistically impossible” undertaking, adding any plans to euthanize even a individual beluga would require “immense staff”, vehicles and specialized tools.

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

She backs calls for the whales to be transferred promptly from the park, with its failing enclosures and dwindling staff.

In late September, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a request to export the whales to China.

“Allowing the application would have meant a ongoing existence in enclosure and a return to public entertainment,” the minister stated. “As the public, we know that whales are meant for the wild, not in enclosures for our entertainment. I could not in clear conscience approve an export that would perpetuate the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s remarks reveal a more general misunderstanding of the realities of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The people needs to understand these are whales that have spent their whole lives in captivity and they will need ongoing assistance for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “The public just don’t understand that it’s not as simple as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As authorities attempt to find a solution, ideas have been put forward, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be released into the natural habitat of the Arctic – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed sanctuary in the region of eastern Canada, which has received official endorsement, has proven most controversial. The future site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain hopeful that it could eventually represent a sustainable resolution for some of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among caretakers she’s discussed with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an untested concept” in the whales’ future.

Different voices say the idea of a refuge indicates a broader global shift away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable plan in the near future.

Charles Vinick, director of the initiative, said the location will simulate the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales receive from specialists, albeit in a significantly bigger space. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|