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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an cute little “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a large but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “constant motion” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canadian entertainment facility have been entangled in a disagreement between a closed attraction, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated controversy over their fate often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the federal government blocked the export of the belugas to China, the embattled attraction near the famous falls where they are kept stated it would consider to end their lives unless the government covers the expense of keeping them alive. Canada’s fisheries minister has denied that request, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are remarkably smart mammals – something Kristy Burgess learned personally.

Burgess spent several years as a whale caretaker, a position that involved gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Establishing those bonds over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of care. At the outset, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so extraordinary and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nonetheless surprised by the subtleties and quirks in their characters. She formed a particular love for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“One whale chose me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “Both changed the way I view bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Her interaction with the whales evolved against a backdrop of rising activist criticism to their confinement.

During her time at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s single orca, the orca, passed away. In all, 19 belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a number which the facility ascribes to natural mortality, but which activists say reflects the poor conditions in which they were maintained.

The facility did not operate to the guests over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the shutdown. “Concrete is breaking off from the enclosures because they’re in disrepair and not being maintained. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and move about with pieces in their jaws. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not reply to a inquiry, but previously asserted: “The whales … get far better health care and around the clock attention than any human in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was dismissed from the park in the spring following the passing of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the facility believed details of the incident were disclosed to the press and she was released not long after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ outcome has left her and staff members in despair. She says the park’s threat to euthanize its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” task, adding any efforts to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “immense staff”, trucks and heavy equipment.

“It’s impossible in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

She supports calls for the whales to be transferred immediately from the facility, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

In recent months, Canada’s government official denied a proposal to transfer the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a perpetual situation in captivity and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As society, we know that belugas belong in the wild, not in tanks for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an relocation that would continue the conditions these belugas have suffered.”

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

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As authorities attempt to find a solution, proposals have surfaced, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A suggested protected area in the province of eastern Canada, which now received official endorsement, has been highly debated. The future facility, which includes a large area of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Advocates remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a sustainable answer for eight of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s spoken with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “simply an untested concept” in the whales’ future.

Some experts say the idea of a refuge indicates a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a viable plan in the near future.

An official, leader of the sanctuary project, said the location will simulate the mental engagement and feeding regimen the whales get from specialists, albeit in a much larger area. He said after the health of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|