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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie Botts is an adorable small “ham sandwich”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a large but fiercely protective companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canadian entertainment facility have been entangled in a tussle between a shuttered park, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those working directly with the whales say the heated controversy over their future often ignores the complexities of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the Canadian government blocked the sale of the belugas to China, the controversial facility near the famous falls where they are kept stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the authorities funds the expense of keeping them alive. Canada’s fisheries minister has refused that request, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Scientists say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, intellectual tasks and communal behavior point to they are highly cognitive mammals – something a former trainer discovered directly.

Burgess spent a significant period as a whale caretaker, a position that involved gaining confidence of the marine predators.

“Developing those bonds over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “In time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more open with you. It’s just so extraordinary and fulfilling.”

Burgess knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was even so astounded by the details and quirks in their dispositions. She developed a particular love for two female belugas with contrasting natures.

“Eve selected me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Each changed the way I perceive relationships.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

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

During her tenure at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s single orca, Kiska, died. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since recent years, a number which the facility ascribes to expected lifespan, but which activists say indicates the substandard environment in which they were kept.

The park did not operate to the public over the recent season, but Burgess says she observed directly consequences of the shutdown. “Concrete is deteriorating from the enclosures because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they pick it up and swim around with fragments in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a inquiry, but in the past asserted: “The whales … obtain far higher quality veterinary services and 24/7 care than any person in the United Kingdom, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was terminated from the facility in early March following the death of Eos, an ailing beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the facility suspected details of the death were shared to the media and she was let go not long after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ outcome has left her and current and former trainers in despair. She says the park’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “logistically impossible” undertaking, adding any attempts to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “considerable manpower”, equipment and machinery.

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

She supports requests for the whales to be taken promptly from the facility, with its deteriorating pools and shrinking team.

In recent months, the nation’s fisheries minister turned down a request to export the whales to an overseas location.

“Granting the proposal would have meant a ongoing existence in confinement and a return to performance for audiences,” the minister commented. “As society, we know that marine mammals are meant for the sea, not in tanks for our enjoyment. I could not in ethical standing permit an transfer that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the minister’s remarks reveal a wider lack of awareness of the facts of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The people needs to understand these are whales that have spent their whole lives in enclosed habitats and they will need human care for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t comprehend that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘end operations’.”

Sanctuary Proposal and Continuing Discussion

As authorities attempt to find a solution, proposals have been put forward, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a key source of food for Inuit communities.

A suggested refuge in the region of eastern Canada, which recently received government approval, has shown to be highly debated. The planned location, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain hopeful that it could ultimately represent a sustainable resolution for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s spoken with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an trial” in the whales’ future.

Different voices say the prospect of a refuge reflects a broader global shift away from captive facilities and could represent a feasible plan in the coming months.

An official, leader of the initiative, said the location will mimic the cognitive activities and diet the whales get from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger environment. He said after the well-being of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|