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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an adorable small “ham sandwich”. Orion – called “Onion” – is a large but fiercely protective friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a worm. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been caught in a disagreement between a closed attraction, public officials and welfare campaigners.

But those most familiar with the whales say the intense controversy over their future often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the federal government prevented the export of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are held warned to euthanize them unless the authorities funds the expense of their survival. Canada’s fisheries minister has refused that demand, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable position.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are deeply intelligent mammals – something a former trainer discovered first-hand.

Burgess spent a significant period as a marine mammal specialist, a position that entailed gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Establishing those bonds over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so extraordinary and fulfilling.”

The trainer knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was even so amazed by the subtleties and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She formed a particular love for two female belugas with contrasting temperaments.

“Eve selected me. The other demanded work,” she said. “Each altered the way I perceive connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s relationship with the whales evolved against a background of growing public opposition to their confinement.

During her three years at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, died. In all, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the facility attributes to age-related causes, but which advocates say points to the poor conditions in which they were maintained.

The facility did not admit visitors to the visitors over the summer, but Burgess says she witnessed firsthand results of the cessation. “Structural materials is falling apart from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being fixed. The whales are exploratory and so they take pieces and move about with chunks in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not reply to a request for comment, but in the past stated: “The whales … obtain far better medical attention and constant supervision than any individual in the Britain, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was terminated from the facility in the spring following the demise of Eos, an unwell beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the facility suspected information of the incident were shared to the news outlets and she was let go soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the facility’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “extremely difficult” undertaking, adding any plans to put down even a one beluga would require “significant manpower”, equipment and heavy equipment.

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

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

In the autumn, Canada’s government official rejected a proposal to send the whales to China.

“To approve the proposal would have meant a continued situation in captivity and a reversion to display for amusement,” the minister stated. “As the public, we know that marine mammals belong in the ocean, not in pools for our entertainment. I could not in ethical standing approve an relocation that would continue the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s statements reveal a more general lack of awareness of the circumstances of existence for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As authorities work to find a solution, proposals have been put forward, some of which have little basis in reality. An idea called for the belugas to be let go into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a primary resource of food for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed sanctuary in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received regulatory clearance, has been highly debated. The prospective location, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Advocates remain optimistic that it could eventually represent a permanent solution for some of the whales.

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

Others say the idea of a sanctuary represents a broader global shift away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible approach in the short term.

Charles Vinick, leader of the initiative, said the location will replicate the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a much larger environment. He said after the medical condition of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|