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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an adorable small “sweetheart”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a large but guardian-like companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

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

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated discussion over their destiny often fails to consider the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in enclosed habitats, have been closely studied by the caretakers who interact with them daily.

After the national authorities prevented the sale of the belugas to China, the struggling facility near Niagara Falls where they are held threatened to put them down unless the authorities pays for the expense of keeping them alive. Canada’s fisheries minister has refused that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable circumstance.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and social skills suggest they are deeply intelligent creatures – something Kristy Burgess learned personally.

Burgess spent several years as a whale caretaker, a position that involved building relationships of the sea creatures.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain mutual trust. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so wonderful and gratifying.”

The trainer knew the whales were highly intelligent, but she says she was nonetheless astounded by the details and quirks in their dispositions. She formed a particular love for two female belugas with opposing personalities.

“Eve selected me. Cleo made me earn it,” she said. “Each transformed the way I view bonding.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her relationship with the whales developed against a backdrop of increasing societal concern to their confinement.

During her three years at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, succumbed. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a toll which the park links to expected lifespan, but which advocates say points to the poor conditions in which they were housed.

The park did not open to the public over the summer, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes effects of the shutdown. “Structural materials is falling apart from the tanks because they’re falling apart and not being repaired. The whales are inquisitive and so they take pieces and move about with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a questionnaire, but in the past claimed: “The whales … obtain far higher quality medical attention and constant care than any individual in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was terminated from the park in early March following the death of a beluga, an ailing beluga the employees had to put down. She said the facility thought details of the incident were shared to the press and she was let go not long after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ outcome has left her and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the facility’s warning to kill its whales is a negotiation tactic and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a single beluga would require “immense manpower”, trucks and specialized tools.

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

She backs demands for the whales to be transferred right away from the park, with its deteriorating pools and shrinking team.

In recent months, Canada’s fisheries minister denied a request to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the proposal would have meant a continued life in captivity and a reversion to display for amusement,” the official commented. “As the public, we know that whales are meant for the sea, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience approve an relocation that would continue the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the minister’s statements indicate a more general misunderstanding of the circumstances of life for belugas raised in confinement.

“The people needs to understand these are whales that have lived entirely in captivity and they will need constant supervision for the rest of their years,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as simple as saying ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As authorities attempt to find a answer, proposals have surfaced, some of which have little basis in reality. An idea called for the belugas to be freed into the wilds of the Arctic – where whales are a primary resource of nourishment for local populations.

A proposed refuge in the region of eastern Canada, which recently received regulatory clearance, has shown to be most controversial. The planned location, which includes a large area of enclosed sea water, remains undeveloped. Proponents remain positive that it could eventually represent a sustainable solution for some of the whales.

But, Burgess says, among trainers she’s consulted, there is “doubts there” about what she said is “merely an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Some experts say the possibility of a refuge indicates a changing attitudes away from animal displays and could represent a viable plan in the short term.

The project lead, head of the initiative, said the location will mimic the mental engagement and nutrition the whales receive from specialists, albeit in a significantly bigger area. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|