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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an adorable little “playful character”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a big but guardian-like companion. Zephyr has “endless energy” and sways like a worm. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canadian amusement park have become pawns in a disagreement between a closed attraction, government authorities and welfare campaigners.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated debate over their fate often overlooks the individual traits of the whales who, after spending their lives in captivity, have been thoroughly researched by the people who interact with them daily.

After the Canadian government disallowed the sale of the belugas to China, the struggling facility near Niagara Falls where they are held warned to euthanize them unless the government covers the upkeep of keeping them alive. The nation’s fisheries minister has refused that demand, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable circumstance.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Scientists say that beluga whales’ neuroanatomy, along with their mimicry abilities, cognitive challenges and communal behavior suggest they are deeply intelligent creatures – something Kristy Burgess learned directly.

She spent three years as a beluga trainer, a position that required gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of affection. At the start, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless amazed by the details and quirks in their personalities. She developed a particular love for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“One whale accepted me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “They altered the way I view relationships.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales developed against a background of growing public opposition to their enclosure.

During her time at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s single orca, the orca, passed away. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a statistic which the facility attributes to natural mortality, but which activists say points to the substandard environment in which they were housed.

The facility did not admit visitors to the guests over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the cessation. “Concrete is falling apart from the pools because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and swim around with fragments in their jaws. It’s upsetting to see.”

The park did not reply to a inquiry, but in the past stated: “The whales … obtain far higher quality veterinary services and 24/7 care than any person in the UK, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was dismissed from the park in recent months following the death of a beluga, an unwell beluga the caretakers had to put down. She said the park believed information of the death were shared to the news outlets and she was fired soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left her and other caretakers in distress. She says the park’s warning to euthanize its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “extremely difficult” endeavor, adding any attempts to put down even a individual beluga would require “considerable manpower”, trucks and machinery.

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

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

In recent months, Canada’s fisheries minister rejected a request to transfer the whales to China.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a ongoing existence in enclosure and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the official commented. “As the public, we know that belugas belong in the sea, not in pools for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an transfer that would prolong the situation these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks reflect a more general misunderstanding of the circumstances of living conditions for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely 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 ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As officials struggle to find a resolution, suggestions have emerged, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a important part of food for local populations.

A proposed sanctuary in the region of eastern Canada, which now received government approval, has been most controversial. The prospective site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, is not yet built. Supporters remain positive that it could in time represent a sustainable answer for eight of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s spoken with, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “simply an trial” in the whales’ fate.

Some experts say the idea of a sanctuary reflects a changing attitudes away from animal displays and could represent a viable solution in the near future.

Charles Vinick, leader of the initiative, said the facility will replicate the mental engagement and feeding regimen the whales receive from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger environment. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|