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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable little “playful character”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a big but fiercely protective companion. Zephyr has “constant motion” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have become pawns in a disagreement between a closed attraction, government authorities and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense discussion over their future often fails to consider the individual traits of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been closely studied by the people who interact with them daily.

After the federal government disallowed the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling amusement park near the famous falls where they are housed stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the government funds the cost of their care. Canada’s marine resources official has refused that request, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious situation.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Scientists say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and social skills point to they are deeply intelligent creatures – something Kristy Burgess observed personally.

She spent three years as a whale caretaker, a position that entailed building relationships of the marine predators.

“Establishing those bonds over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of affection. At the beginning, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was even so amazed by the subtleties and unique traits in their dispositions. She formed a deep bond for a pair of whales with contrasting personalities.

“Eve accepted me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Each changed the way I perceive connection.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Burgess’s interaction with the whales progressed against a backdrop of growing public opposition to their confinement.

During her time at the facility, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, the orca, passed away. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a toll which the facility attributes to age-related causes, but which activists say indicates the poor conditions in which they were kept.

The park did not operate to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand effects of the cessation. “Structural materials is breaking off from the enclosures because they’re falling apart and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and swim around with pieces in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The facility did not respond to a request for comment, but in the past claimed: “The whales … receive far higher quality medical attention and 24/7 supervision than any person in the United Kingdom, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in early March following the demise of a beluga, an sick beluga the employees had to euthanize. She said the facility thought information of the death were leaked to the press and she was released not long after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “logistically impossible” endeavor, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable manpower”, trucks and machinery.

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

She supports demands for the whales to be transferred right away from the park, with its failing enclosures and dwindling staff.

In the autumn, the nation’s fisheries minister rejected a bid to send the whales to China.

“To approve the application would have meant a continued life in captivity and a return to public entertainment,” the minister stated. “As the public, we know that whales are meant for the wild, not in tanks for our entertainment. I could not in good conscience approve an transfer that would continue the treatment these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the minister’s statements indicate a more general lack of awareness of the facts of life for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As officials struggle to find a solution, ideas have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a key source of food for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested sanctuary in the province of Nova Scotia, which has received government approval, has been contentious. The future site, which includes a large area of enclosed sea water, is not yet built. Proponents remain positive that it could eventually represent a sustainable answer for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s discussed with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an trial” in the whales’ future.

Others say the prospect of a refuge indicates a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a viable plan in the short term.

Charles Vinick, head of the plan, said the facility will mimic the mental engagement and diet the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a significantly bigger environment. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|