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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an adorable small “ham sandwich”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “constant motion” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty captive marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have been entangled in a disagreement between a defunct facility, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned debate over their destiny often fails to consider the nuances of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been carefully observed by the people who interact with them daily.

After the Canadian government prevented the sale of the belugas to China, the controversial amusement park near the famous falls where they are held stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the government funds the expense of keeping them alive. Canada’s marine resources official has refused that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable circumstance.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Scientists say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and communal behavior point to they are deeply intelligent creatures – something one caretaker observed personally.

She spent three years as a whale caretaker, a position that involved gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Establishing those bonds over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of affection. At the start, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Over 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 exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nonetheless amazed by the nuances and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She developed a particular love for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“Eve accepted me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “They changed the way I view bonding.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

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

During her three years at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one killer whale, the orca, died. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since recent years, a toll which the park ascribes to expected lifespan, but which campaigners say points to the substandard environment in which they were maintained.

The facility did not operate to the guests over the summer, but Burgess says she witnessed firsthand consequences of the shutdown. “Structural materials is falling apart from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being maintained. The whales are exploratory and so they pick it up and navigate with pieces in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The facility did not reply to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality veterinary services and around the clock attention than any person in the United Kingdom, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the park in the spring following the passing of a beluga, an sick beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the park thought information of the incident were shared to the press and she was fired not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left Burgess and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the park’s threat to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “logistically impossible” task, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “significant manpower”, trucks and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess backs demands for the whales to be removed immediately from the park, with its failing enclosures and shrinking team.

In the autumn, Canada’s fisheries minister rejected a request to export the whales to China.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a continued life in captivity and a reversion to display for amusement,” the official commented. “As society, we know that whales belong in the sea, not in pools for our amusement. I could not in clear conscience authorize an export that would continue the treatment these belugas have endured.”

But Burgess said the minister’s statements reflect a wider misunderstanding of the circumstances of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The society needs to realize these are whales that have existed solely in enclosed habitats and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t understand that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As authorities struggle to find a solution, ideas have surfaced, some of which have minimal feasibility. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the wilds of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of nourishment for Inuit communities.

A suggested refuge in the province of eastern Canada, which recently received official endorsement, has shown to be most controversial. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a long term solution for eight of the whales.

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

Different voices say the idea of a sanctuary indicates a changing attitudes away from captive facilities and could represent a viable plan in the short term.

An official, leader of the plan, said the location will simulate the cognitive activities and diet the whales receive from specialists, albeit in a more expansive area. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|