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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an adorable little “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – called “Onion” – is a big but fiercely protective friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “constant motion” and sways like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a heart of gold.

Thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canadian amusement park have been entangled in a tussle between a defunct facility, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense controversy over their future often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been thoroughly researched by the people who interact with them daily.

After the national authorities prevented the export of the belugas to China, the struggling facility near Niagara Falls where they are housed threatened to euthanize them unless the federal government pays for the expense of keeping them alive. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that request, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable situation.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and social skills indicate they are highly cognitive creatures – something Kristy Burgess learned first-hand.

She spent a significant period as a beluga trainer, a position that entailed earning the trust of the sea creatures.

“Establishing those relationships over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of love. At the outset, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “In time, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nevertheless surprised by the details and idiosyncrasies in their personalities. She formed a deep bond for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“One whale chose me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Both transformed the way I understand bonding.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her relationship with the whales evolved against a backdrop of increasing societal concern to their confinement.

During her tenure at the facility, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, the orca, died. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a number which the facility links to expected lifespan, but which advocates say points to the substandard environment in which they were housed.

The park did not operate to the visitors over the recent season, but Burgess says she witnessed firsthand results of the shutdown. “Structural materials is falling apart from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and move about with fragments in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … obtain far better health care and constant care than any individual in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the park in early March following the death of a beluga, an ailing beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the facility believed details of the death were shared to the media and she was fired not long after.

The uncertainty 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” task, adding any efforts to euthanize even a individual beluga would require “significant staff”, vehicles and machinery.

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

She advocates for calls for the whales to be transferred right away from the park, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

In the autumn, the nation’s government official turned down a proposal to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the application would have meant a ongoing life in confinement and a return to display for amusement,” the official stated. “As Canadians, we know that belugas are meant for the sea, not in tanks for our entertainment. I could not in ethical standing authorize an export that would prolong the conditions these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks reflect a more general lack of awareness of the circumstances of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The society needs to grasp these are whales that have spent their whole lives in enclosed habitats and they will need human care for the rest of their years,” she said. “The public just don’t understand that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As authorities attempt to find a resolution, ideas have emerged, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a primary resource of nourishment for local populations.

A proposed refuge in the province of Nova Scotia, which has received regulatory clearance, has shown to be contentious. The prospective site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain positive that it could eventually represent a sustainable answer for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s discussed with, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “simply an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Others say the idea of a refuge indicates a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a viable approach in the short term.

An official, head of the plan, said the site will replicate the mental engagement and diet the whales obtain from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger area. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|