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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an charming small “playful character”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canadian amusement park have been entangled in a struggle between a shuttered park, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those closest to the whales say the heated controversy over their future often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been closely studied by the caretakers who interact with them daily.

After the national authorities disallowed the export of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are held stated it would consider to end their lives unless the government pays for the cost of their survival. Canada’s fisheries minister has denied that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Intelligent Marine Mammals

Experts say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills point to they are deeply intelligent creatures – something Kristy Burgess observed first-hand.

Burgess spent several years as a marine mammal specialist, a position that entailed gaining confidence of the aquatic animals.

“Building up those relationships over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of affection. At the outset, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so wonderful and fulfilling.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was even so amazed by the nuances and unique traits in their personalities. She formed a special affection for a pair of whales with opposing temperaments.

“Eve chose me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “They altered the way I understand connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s interaction with the whales developed against a background of growing public opposition to their confinement.

During her tenure at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s one orca, the orca, succumbed. In all, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a statistic which the facility links to expected lifespan, but which activists say reflects the inadequate care in which they were kept.

The facility did not operate to the visitors over the summer, but Burgess says she witnessed firsthand effects of the closure. “Concrete is falling apart from the tanks because they’re degrading and not being repaired. The whales are exploratory and so they take pieces and swim around with chunks in their jaws. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not reply to a inquiry, but earlier asserted: “The whales … receive far superior veterinary services and constant supervision than any human in the UK, or other places.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

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

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left her and current and former trainers in distress. She says the facility’s warning to euthanize its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” task, adding any attempts to put down even a single beluga would require “significant staff”, trucks and heavy equipment.

“There’s no way in hell the caretakers would ever do it,” she said.

Burgess supports requests for the whales to be taken right away from the park, with its failing enclosures and shrinking team.

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

“To approve the request would have meant a continued existence in captivity and a return to performance for audiences,” the official stated. “As society, we know that belugas should be in the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience permit an transfer that would continue the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s statements indicate a wider incorrect perception of the facts of living conditions for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As officials attempt to find a resolution, suggestions have surfaced, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a important part of food for Inuit communities.

A proposed protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which has received government approval, has been highly debated. The future location, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, is not yet built. Supporters remain positive that it could in time represent a permanent resolution for a number of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among staff she’s spoken with, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “simply an trial” in the whales’ well-being.

Some experts say the possibility of a refuge indicates a changing attitudes away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a feasible plan in the coming months.

Charles Vinick, director of the initiative, said the location will simulate the cognitive activities and nutrition the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|