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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable little “playful character”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but guardian-like companion. Zephyr has “constant motion” and sways like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a heart of gold.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canadian amusement park have been caught in a disagreement between a shuttered park, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense controversy over their fate often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been carefully observed by the people who see them each day.

After the Canadian government prevented the sale of the belugas to China, the controversial attraction near the famous falls where they are housed warned to end their lives unless the authorities pays for the cost of their care. Canada’s fisheries minister has rejected that request, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable situation.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Scientists say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and communal behavior suggest they are highly cognitive creatures – something a former trainer discovered directly.

She spent several years as a marine mammal specialist, a job that entailed building relationships of the marine predators.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the outset, 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 wonderful and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nevertheless surprised by the details and idiosyncrasies in their characters. She cultivated a particular love for two female belugas with different temperaments.

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

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s interaction with the whales evolved against a context of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her tenure at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, passed away. In all, 19 belugas have perished at the park since recent years, a toll which the park attributes to natural mortality, but which campaigners say points to the substandard environment in which they were housed.

The facility did not operate to the visitors over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the cessation. “Concrete is deteriorating from the enclosures because they’re degrading and not being maintained. The whales are curious and so they grab fragments and move about with pieces in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a questionnaire, but previously asserted: “The whales … get far superior health care and constant attention than any human in the United Kingdom, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in early March following the death of a beluga, an ailing beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the park believed information of the death were shared to the press and she was let go not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left her and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the park’s warning to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a one beluga would require “significant personnel”, vehicles and heavy equipment.

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

Burgess backs demands for the whales to be removed immediately from the park, with its deteriorating pools and dwindling staff.

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

“Granting the proposal would have meant a continued life in confinement and a return to public entertainment,” the minister stated. “As Canadians, we know that whales should be in the sea, not in tanks for our entertainment. I could not in ethical standing permit an export that would perpetuate the conditions these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s statements indicate a more general incorrect perception of the circumstances of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The public needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in confinement and they will need constant supervision for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “Many just don’t realize that it’s not as simple as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As decision makers attempt to find a answer, ideas have surfaced, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be released into the natural habitat of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of sustenance for local populations.

A planned refuge in the province of eastern Canada, which recently received government approval, has been contentious. The planned facility, which includes a large area of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain positive that it could in time represent a long term answer for some of the whales.

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

Some experts say the prospect of a sanctuary indicates a changing attitudes away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a feasible approach in the near future.

The project lead, head of the plan, said the facility will simulate the mental engagement and diet the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a significantly bigger space. He said after the medical condition of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|