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Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable little “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – called “Onion” – is a big but fiercely protective companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canadian amusement park have become pawns in a tussle between a closed attraction, government authorities and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the impassioned discussion over their future often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been closely studied by the people who see them each day.

After the national authorities disallowed the sale of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are kept warned to end their lives unless the government funds the upkeep of keeping them alive. Canada’s marine resources official has denied that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and group interactions suggest they are remarkably smart mammals – something a former trainer learned directly.

Burgess spent three years as a beluga trainer, a job that required building relationships of the aquatic animals.

“Developing those relationships over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of affection. At the beginning, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so extraordinary and gratifying.”

Burgess knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nevertheless amazed by the details and unique traits in their dispositions. She cultivated a special affection for two female belugas with opposing temperaments.

“One whale selected me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Both altered the way I perceive bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

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

During her three years at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s single orca, the orca, passed away. In total, 19 belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a number which the park links to age-related causes, but which advocates say points to the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The facility did not admit visitors to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes results of the cessation. “Concrete is breaking off from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. The whales are inquisitive and so they grab fragments and move about with chunks in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The facility did not respond to a request for comment, but previously asserted: “The whales … get far better health care and constant care than any individual in the UK, or other places.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was dismissed from the facility in the spring following the death of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the facility suspected details of the death were leaked to the media and she was fired soon after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and other caretakers in despair. She says the park’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any plans to put down even a single beluga would require “considerable personnel”, equipment and heavy equipment.

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

She backs calls for the whales to be taken right away from the facility, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

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

“To approve the proposal would have meant a ongoing life in enclosure and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the official stated. “As society, we know that whales belong 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 experienced.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reveal a broader incorrect perception of the realities of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The society needs to grasp these are whales that have spent their whole lives in confinement and they will need constant supervision for the foreseeable future,” she said. “People just don’t understand that it’s not as easy as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As decision makers struggle to find a resolution, ideas have emerged, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a key source of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed protected area in the province of Nova Scotia, which recently received official endorsement, has been contentious. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Proponents remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a permanent resolution for a number of the whales.

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

Some experts say the possibility of a refuge represents a broader global shift away from captive facilities and could represent a viable solution in the coming months.

The project lead, head of the plan, said the location will mimic the intellectual stimulation and diet the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|