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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an charming small “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a big but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a struggle between a closed attraction, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those working directly with the whales say the heated controversy over their destiny often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been thoroughly researched by the people who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities blocked the transfer of the belugas to China, the controversial facility near the famous falls where they are kept warned to put them down unless the government pays for the expense of their care. The nation’s marine resources official has rejected that demand, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain circumstance.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Researchers say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and group interactions suggest they are deeply intelligent animals – something one caretaker learned first-hand.

She spent a significant period as a beluga trainer, a job that entailed gaining confidence of the sea creatures.

“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. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so wonderful and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the details and idiosyncrasies in their characters. She developed a deep bond for a pair of whales with contrasting temperaments.

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

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s relationship with the whales developed against a context of increasing societal concern to their captivity.

During her time at the facility, seven belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, died. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since 2019, a statistic which the facility ascribes to natural mortality, but which campaigners say indicates the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The facility did not operate to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the closure. “Structural materials is deteriorating from the tanks because they’re falling apart and not being repaired. The whales are exploratory and so they take pieces and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not respond to a questionnaire, but in the past asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality health care and around the clock attention than any human in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the facility in early March following the passing of Eos, an unwell beluga the park staff had to put down. She said the park thought details of the incident were shared to the news outlets and she was let go soon after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ outcome has left her and staff members in anguish. She says the facility’s warning to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any efforts to put down even a single beluga would require “immense personnel”, trucks and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess backs demands for the whales to be transferred immediately from the park, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

In late September, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a request to send the whales to China.

“Allowing the request would have meant a perpetual situation in confinement and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As Canadians, we know that belugas should be in the ocean, not in enclosures for our enjoyment. I could not in good conscience approve an relocation that would prolong the conditions these belugas have endured.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s comments reflect a wider incorrect perception of the facts of living conditions for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The society needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in enclosed habitats and they will need ongoing assistance for the rest of their years,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as simple as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers struggle to find a resolution, suggestions have emerged, some of which have questionable practicality. One proposal called for the belugas to be released into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a primary resource of food for Inuit communities.

A suggested protected area in the province of Nova Scotia, which recently received government approval, has been most controversial. The planned facility, which includes extensive space of protected cove, is not yet built. Proponents remain positive that it could in time represent a permanent solution for eight of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s spoken with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an experiment” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the prospect of a protected habitat represents a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a workable plan in the short term.

An official, head of the plan, said the site will replicate the mental engagement and nutrition the whales receive from trainers, albeit in a much larger space. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|