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Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an cute little “sweetheart”. Orion – called “Onion” – is a big but guardian-like companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and moves like a worm. Lillooet is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty captive beluga whales in a Canadian entertainment facility have been entangled in a disagreement between a shuttered park, local and national governments and welfare campaigners.

But those working directly with the whales say the intense discussion over their future often fails to consider the nuances of the whales who, after spending their lives in confinement, have been thoroughly researched by the caretakers who work with them regularly.

After the federal government prevented the transfer of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled amusement park near Niagara Falls where they are kept warned to end their lives unless the federal government covers the cost of keeping them alive. Canada’s marine resources official has refused that ultimatum, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain circumstance.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Scientists say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and social skills indicate they are deeply intelligent creatures – something one caretaker observed personally.

Burgess spent a significant period as a beluga trainer, a job that required earning the trust of the aquatic animals.

“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. “Eventually, you gain reciprocal understanding. And they start being more vulnerable with you. It’s just so extraordinary and fulfilling.”

The trainer knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nevertheless surprised by the nuances and idiosyncrasies in their personalities. She formed a special affection for two female belugas with different personalities.

“One whale accepted me. The other made me earn it,” she said. “Both changed the way I view connection.”

Growing Opposition and Deteriorating Conditions

Burgess’s relationship with the whales progressed against a backdrop of increasing societal concern to their enclosure.

During her tenure at the attraction, multiple belugas and the park’s single killer whale, Kiska, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a statistic which the facility links to expected lifespan, but which activists say indicates the inadequate care in which they were housed.

The park did not operate to the public over the summer, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes results of the shutdown. “Structural materials is falling apart from the enclosures because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they pick it up and swim around with chunks in their jaws. It’s upsetting to see.”

The facility did not respond to a request for comment, but earlier claimed: “The whales … receive far better veterinary services and around the clock care than any person in the Britain, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was terminated from the facility in early March following the demise of a beluga, an sick beluga the park staff had to euthanize. She said the facility thought particulars of the incident were disclosed to the news outlets and she was let go soon after.

The ambiguity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and other caretakers in despair. She says the park’s ultimatum to end the lives of its whales is a leverage tool and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any plans to put down even a individual beluga would require “immense manpower”, equipment and heavy equipment.

“There’s no way in hell the employees would ever do it,” she said.

She supports calls for the whales to be taken right away from the facility, with its crumbling tanks and shrinking team.

In late September, Canada’s government official denied a bid to send the whales to an overseas location.

“Granting the application would have meant a perpetual situation in confinement and a return to display for amusement,” the official commented. “As society, we know that whales are meant for the wild, not in pools for our amusement. I could not in good conscience authorize an export that would continue the situation these belugas have endured.”

But the former trainer said the official’s remarks indicate a more general misunderstanding of the facts of existence for belugas raised in confinement.

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

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As officials work to find a answer, proposals have been put forward, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be released into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a important part of food for local populations.

A suggested protected area in the region of Nova Scotia, which now received government approval, has shown to be most controversial. The planned location, which includes 100 acres of penned in ocean, doesn’t yet exist. Proponents remain positive that it could in time represent a long term solution for some of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among caretakers she’s spoken with, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “merely an untested concept” in the whales’ future.

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

Charles Vinick, director of the plan, said the site will simulate the intellectual stimulation and feeding regimen the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a significantly bigger space. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|