It is devastating’: how thirty captive white whales are being used as bargaining chips in dispute over animal welfare.

The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an cute small “sweetheart”. Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a large but guardian-like companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “most affectionate” with a kind nature.

A group of thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a disagreement between a shuttered park, local and national governments and animal rights activists.

But those closest to the whales say the impassioned controversy over their destiny often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been thoroughly researched by the people who see them each day.

After the national authorities prevented the export of the belugas to China, the struggling amusement park near the famous falls where they are held threatened to euthanize them unless the federal government funds the cost of their survival. Canada’s marine resources official has rejected that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an dangerously unstable position.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Researchers say that beluga whales’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are deeply intelligent animals – something a former trainer observed first-hand.

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

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

Burgess knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nevertheless amazed by the subtleties and unique traits in their dispositions. She cultivated a deep bond for a pair of whales with different temperaments.

“One whale chose me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Each altered the way I understand relationships.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales developed against a backdrop of growing public opposition to their enclosure.

During her time at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s single killer whale, the orca, died. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a number which the park ascribes to age-related causes, but which advocates say indicates the substandard environment in which they were housed.

The facility did not open to the public over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes consequences of the closure. “Concrete is breaking off from the tanks because they’re in disrepair and not being maintained. The whales are exploratory and so they pick it up and swim around with pieces in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not reply to a request for comment, but previously claimed: “The whales … get far higher quality medical attention and constant attention than any individual in the UK, or anywhere else.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

The former employee was dismissed from the park in early March following the passing of a beluga, an unwell beluga the park staff had to put down. She said the facility suspected details of the death were shared to the media and she was fired not long after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ fate has left her and current and former trainers in despair. She says the park’s threat to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” undertaking, adding any efforts to euthanize even a single beluga would require “significant manpower”, trucks and machinery.

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

She backs requests for the whales to be removed right away from the facility, with its failing enclosures and dwindling staff.

In recent months, the nation’s government official rejected a proposal to send the whales to China.

“To approve the proposal would have meant a perpetual situation in enclosure and a return to performance for audiences,” the official stated. “As Canadians, we know that whales belong in the ocean, not in enclosures for our amusement. I could not in good conscience permit an export that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks indicate a more general lack of awareness of the circumstances of existence for belugas born in captivity.

“The people needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely in enclosed habitats and they will need constant supervision for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as easy as saying ‘close it down’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As decision makers attempt to find a resolution, proposals have been put forward, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be freed into the open waters of Canada’s north – where whales are a key source of nourishment for Inuit communities.

A proposed protected area in the province of Nova Scotia, which now received official endorsement, has shown to be most controversial. The planned site, which includes 100 acres of protected cove, is not yet built. Supporters remain optimistic that it could ultimately represent a long term solution for eight of the whales.

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

Some experts say the idea of a protected habitat indicates a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a viable plan in the short term.

An official, leader of the sanctuary project, said the facility will replicate the intellectual stimulation and feeding regimen the whales get from specialists, albeit in a much larger area. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|