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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an charming small “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a big but guardian-like companion. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have been caught in a tussle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and animal rights activists.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated discussion over their fate often overlooks the nuances of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been closely studied by the people who see them each day.

After the national authorities blocked the sale of the belugas to China, the controversial attraction near Niagara Falls where they are held stated it would consider to end their lives unless the authorities covers the upkeep of their survival. The nation’s fisheries minister has refused that demand, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and communal behavior indicate they are deeply intelligent animals – something Kristy Burgess learned first-hand.

Burgess spent three years as a beluga trainer, a role that involved building relationships of the aquatic animals.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the beginning, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the subtleties and quirks in their personalities. She cultivated a particular love for two female belugas with different natures.

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

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

Her relationship with the whales progressed against a backdrop of rising activist criticism to their captivity.

During her three years at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, passed away. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a number which the facility ascribes to natural mortality, but which activists say indicates the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not admit visitors to the visitors over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand results of the cessation. “Concrete is falling apart from the enclosures because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. The whales are inquisitive and so they grab fragments and move about with chunks in their jaws. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not respond to a inquiry, but in the past claimed: “The whales … obtain far higher quality medical attention and constant attention than any person in the UK, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in recent months following the death of a beluga, an ailing beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the park thought details of the incident were shared to the news outlets and she was let go shortly thereafter.

The uncertainty over the whales’ outcome has left her and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable manpower”, vehicles and machinery.

“There’s no way in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

She advocates for demands for the whales to be taken right away from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and shrinking team.

In recent months, the nation’s fisheries minister rejected a proposal to export the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the request would have meant a perpetual situation in enclosure and a reversion to public entertainment,” the official stated. “As the public, we know that belugas are meant for the ocean, not in pools for our enjoyment. I could not in clear conscience permit an transfer that would perpetuate the situation these belugas have suffered.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s comments indicate a wider incorrect perception of the circumstances of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As officials work to find a resolution, ideas have surfaced, some of which have minimal feasibility. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of nourishment for Indigenous peoples.

A planned protected area in the province of eastern Canada, which has received government approval, has proven highly debated. The future facility, which includes a large area of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Advocates remain positive that it could ultimately represent a long term answer for some of the whales.

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

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

Charles Vinick, head of the plan, said the site will simulate the mental engagement and feeding regimen the whales obtain from caretakers, albeit in a much larger environment. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|