🔗 Share this article

Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an charming little “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a sizeable but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a worm. Lillooet is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a heart of gold.

A group of thirty captive marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a struggle between a shuttered park, government authorities and advocacy groups.

But those closest to the whales say the intense debate over their future often fails to consider the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been closely studied by the caretakers who interact with them daily.

After the national authorities disallowed the export of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are kept warned to euthanize them unless the government pays for the upkeep of their survival. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that request, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable circumstance.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Researchers say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their mimicry abilities, cognitive challenges and social skills suggest they are deeply intelligent creatures – something one caretaker observed first-hand.

Burgess spent several years as a beluga trainer, a role that required gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Establishing those bonds over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of affection. At the beginning, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Over time, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was even so amazed by the details and quirks in their personalities. She formed a special affection for Eve and Cleopatra with opposing personalities.

“One whale selected me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “They transformed the way I understand bonding.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

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

During her three years 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 natural mortality, but which activists say points to the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The facility did not open to the public over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand effects of the cessation. “Structural materials is breaking off from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. 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 questionnaire, but previously asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality health care and around the clock supervision than any individual in the United Kingdom, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was fired from the park in the spring following the death of a beluga, an sick beluga the employees had to put down. She said the facility thought particulars of the death were disclosed to the news outlets and she was let go shortly thereafter.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left her and other caretakers in despair. She says the park’s threat to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “logistically impossible” task, adding any efforts to humanely kill even a single beluga would require “significant personnel”, equipment and specialized tools.

“It’s impossible in hell the employees would ever do it,” she said.

She supports calls for the whales to be transferred immediately from the park, with its deteriorating pools and reduced personnel.

In recent months, Canada’s government official rejected a request to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“Granting the application would have meant a perpetual situation in captivity and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister stated. “As Canadians, we know that whales should be in the sea, not in pools for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience permit an export that would continue the treatment these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the minister’s comments reveal a more general lack of awareness of the facts of living conditions for belugas born in captivity.

“The people needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in captivity and they will need constant supervision for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “Many just don’t realize that it’s not as simple as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As officials work to find a solution, proposals have been put forward, some of which have minimal feasibility. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be let go into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a key source of sustenance for local populations.

A planned protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which recently received official endorsement, has been contentious. The future site, which includes a large area of protected cove, is not yet built. Proponents remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a long term answer for eight of the whales.

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

Some experts say the idea of a refuge represents a worldwide trend away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible approach in the near future.

An official, head of the plan, said the location will mimic the mental engagement and nutrition the whales obtain from caretakers, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the medical condition of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|