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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an cute little “playful character”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a large but very loyal friend. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based amusement park have been caught in a tussle between a shuttered park, government authorities and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the heated controversy over their destiny often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after growing up in confinement, have been carefully observed by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the national authorities prevented the sale of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are housed stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the authorities funds the upkeep of their care. Canada’s fisheries minister has rejected that demand, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable position.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills point to they are deeply intelligent animals – something Kristy Burgess discovered personally.

She spent three years as a beluga trainer, a job that entailed building relationships of the sea creatures.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of love. At the outset, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so magical and fulfilling.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the subtleties and unique traits in their personalities. She developed a particular love for a pair of whales with opposing temperaments.

“One whale chose me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “They changed the way I view bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

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

During her tenure at the park, multiple belugas and the park’s one orca, the orca, died. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a toll which the park attributes to natural mortality, but which advocates say reflects the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The facility did not operate to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she observed directly results of the cessation. “Concrete is breaking off from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are exploratory and so they take pieces and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s upsetting to see.”

The facility did not reply to a request for comment, but in the past claimed: “The whales … get far higher quality medical attention and 24/7 care than any individual in the UK, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was fired from the facility in the spring following the demise of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the facility thought details of the incident were disclosed to the media and she was let go not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left her and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the facility’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “practically unfeasible” endeavor, adding any efforts to put down even a individual beluga would require “significant staff”, vehicles and machinery.

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

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

In recent months, Canada’s fisheries minister denied a request to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the request would have meant a continued life in captivity and a return to performance for audiences,” the official stated. “As Canadians, we know that marine mammals are meant for the wild, not in tanks for our entertainment. I could not in good conscience permit an relocation that would continue the conditions these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the official’s comments indicate a more general misunderstanding of the realities of life for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As officials attempt to find a resolution, suggestions have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. One proposal called for the belugas to be released into the open waters of northern regions – where whales are a important part of sustenance for local populations.

A proposed protected area in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received official endorsement, has proven most controversial. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, is not yet built. Proponents remain hopeful that it could in time represent a sustainable solution for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an trial” in the whales’ well-being.

Different voices say the prospect of a sanctuary reflects a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable approach in the coming months.

Charles Vinick, director of the sanctuary project, said the location will simulate the mental engagement and diet the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|