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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an cute little “ham sandwich”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a big but fiercely protective companion. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

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

But those closest to the whales say the impassioned discussion over their destiny often overlooks the complexities of the whales who, after growing up in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities disallowed the export of the belugas to China, the embattled amusement park near the famous falls where they are kept warned to end their lives unless the authorities funds the cost of keeping them alive. Canada’s marine resources official has refused that demand, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable situation.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, problem solving and communal behavior suggest they are highly cognitive animals – something one caretaker observed first-hand.

Burgess spent a significant period as a marine mammal specialist, a role that required building relationships of the marine predators.

“Building up those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of care. At the start, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “In time, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so extraordinary and rewarding.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the nuances and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She cultivated a particular love for a pair of whales with different natures.

“One whale accepted me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “Both transformed the way I view relationships.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her connection with the whales evolved against a context of growing public opposition to their enclosure.

During her time at the park, seven belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a number which the park attributes to age-related causes, but which campaigners say reflects the inadequate care in which they were kept.

The facility did not admit visitors to the public over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the closure. “Structural materials is breaking off from the pools because they’re falling apart and not being maintained. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and move about with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not reply to a questionnaire, but in the past asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality medical attention and constant attention than any person in the Britain, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in early March following the passing of Eos, an ailing beluga the park staff had to humanely kill. She said the park believed details of the incident were leaked to the news outlets and she was fired soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left her and other caretakers in distress. She says the facility’s threat to end the lives of its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any plans to euthanize even a single beluga would require “considerable personnel”, equipment and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess backs requests for the whales to be taken right away from the park, with its failing enclosures and reduced personnel.

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

“Allowing the application would have meant a perpetual situation in confinement and a reversion to public entertainment,” the minister stated. “As the public, we know that whales should be in the ocean, not in tanks for our entertainment. I could not in clear conscience permit an export that would perpetuate the conditions these belugas have endured.”

But the former trainer said the official’s remarks indicate a broader incorrect perception of the facts of life for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As officials work to find a answer, proposals have surfaced, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of Canada’s north – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A planned refuge in the province of Nova Scotia, which recently received official endorsement, has shown to be most controversial. The future site, which includes 100 acres of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Supporters remain hopeful that it could eventually represent a long term solution for some of the whales.

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

Some experts say the idea of a protected habitat represents a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a feasible solution in the near future.

An official, director of the sanctuary project, said the facility will mimic the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales get from specialists, albeit in a more expansive environment. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|