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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an adorable small “playful character”. The whale Orion – called “Onion Ring” – is a big but very loyal companion. Zephyr has “endless energy” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a kind nature.

Thirty enclosed marine mammals in a Canada-based amusement park have become pawns in a tussle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those working directly with the whales say the heated controversy over their fate often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after spending their lives in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who interact with them daily.

After the national authorities prevented the transfer of the belugas to a foreign facility, the controversial amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are kept stated it would consider to euthanize them unless the federal government pays for the expense of their survival. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that request, placing the thirty whales in an increasingly precarious position.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Scientists say that belugas’ neuroanatomy, along with their sound replication, intellectual tasks and communal behavior point to they are remarkably smart animals – something Kristy Burgess discovered directly.

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

“Developing those relationships over time takes a lot of consistency and a lot of love. At the start, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “Over time, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so magical and rewarding.”

The trainer knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nevertheless astounded by the details and quirks in their personalities. She cultivated a particular love for a pair of whales with contrasting natures.

“One whale chose me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Each transformed the way I perceive connection.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Her connection with the whales progressed against a background of growing public opposition to their enclosure.

During her three years at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one killer whale, the orca, died. In total, 19 belugas have died at the park since recent years, a toll which the park links to expected lifespan, but which activists say points to the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not admit visitors to the guests over the summer, but the former trainer says she saw with her own eyes effects of the closure. “Structural materials is deteriorating from the tanks because they’re falling apart and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they pick it up and swim around with pieces in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not comment to a inquiry, but earlier claimed: “The whales … get far higher quality health care and around the clock attention than any individual in the UK, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was fired from the facility in early March following the passing of Eos, an sick beluga the caretakers had to put down. She said the park thought details of the death were leaked to the news outlets and she was fired soon after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ future has left her and staff members in distress. She says the park’s warning to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “logistically impossible” undertaking, adding any plans to put down even a single beluga would require “immense manpower”, trucks and machinery.

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

She supports requests for the whales to be taken immediately from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and dwindling staff.

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

“Granting the proposal would have meant a perpetual life in captivity and a reversion to display for amusement,” the minister commented. “As Canadians, we know that marine mammals belong in the wild, not in enclosures for our entertainment. I could not in clear conscience permit an export that would perpetuate the conditions these belugas have suffered.”

But Burgess said the official’s statements reflect a wider incorrect perception of the circumstances of life for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have spent their whole lives in captivity and they will need ongoing assistance for the remainder of their lives,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as straightforward as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As decision makers attempt to find a answer, suggestions have surfaced, some of which have minimal feasibility. An idea called for the belugas to be freed into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a primary resource of sustenance for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which recently received regulatory clearance, has proven most controversial. The planned location, which includes a large area of penned in ocean, is not yet built. Proponents remain positive that it could eventually represent a long term answer for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s discussed with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an untested concept” in the whales’ well-being.

Different voices say the idea of a sanctuary represents a worldwide trend away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a workable plan in the near future.

An official, head of the initiative, said the site will mimic the intellectual stimulation and diet the whales receive from caretakers, albeit in a significantly bigger environment. He said after the well-being of whales is completely examined, which could take months|an extended period|