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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an cute small “ham sandwich”. The whale Orion – nicknamed “Onion” – is a big but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “most affectionate” with a gentle spirit.

Thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canadian amusement park have become pawns in a disagreement between a shuttered park, government authorities and welfare campaigners.

But those closest to the whales say the heated debate over their fate often ignores the nuances of the whales who, after living their entire lives in confinement, have been closely studied by the caretakers who see them each day.

After the Canadian government prevented the transfer of the belugas to China, the controversial facility near the famous falls where they are held threatened to put them down unless the authorities funds the upkeep of their survival. Canada’s marine resources official has denied that request, placing the 30 whales in an ever more uncertain situation.

Highly Cognitive Sea Creatures

Experts say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their mimicry abilities, intellectual tasks and group interactions suggest they are remarkably smart mammals – something Kristy Burgess discovered directly.

She spent several years as a beluga trainer, a job that entailed building relationships of the aquatic animals.

“Building up those connections over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of affection. At the start, they’re very wary of you,” she said. “In time, you gain mutual trust. 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 even so astounded by the details and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She developed a particular love for two female belugas with different temperaments.

“One whale accepted me. The other demanded work,” she said. “Each altered the way I perceive connection.”

Growing Opposition and Facility Decline

Burgess’s interaction with the whales evolved against a backdrop of growing public opposition to their confinement.

During her three years at the attraction, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, died. In all, 19 belugas have died at the park since recent years, a number which the facility links to natural mortality, but which advocates say indicates the substandard environment in which they were maintained.

The facility did not admit visitors to the visitors over the recent season, but Burgess says she saw with her own eyes effects of the closure. “Structural materials is deteriorating from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they grab fragments and navigate with fragments in their mouth. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not comment to a request for comment, but earlier stated: “The whales … get far better veterinary services and 24/7 supervision than any person in the Britain, or anywhere else.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was dismissed from the park in early March following the demise of Eos, an unwell beluga the caretakers had to put down. She said the facility thought details of the incident were shared to the news outlets and she was fired soon after.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ fate has left Burgess and current and former trainers in anguish. She says the facility’s ultimatum to euthanize its whales is a bargaining chip and is a “logistically impossible” undertaking, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “significant manpower”, vehicles and specialized tools.

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

Burgess advocates for calls for the whales to be transferred promptly from the park, with its crumbling tanks and shrinking team.

In the autumn, Canada’s government official turned down a request to send the whales to an overseas location.

“Allowing the request would have meant a continued situation in confinement and a return to public entertainment,” the minister commented. “As the public, we know that whales belong in the wild, not in tanks for our amusement. I could not in good conscience approve an export that would prolong the situation these belugas have suffered.”

But the former trainer said the official’s statements reflect a wider lack of awareness of the facts of life for belugas raised in confinement.

“The public needs to grasp these are whales that have existed solely in enclosed habitats and they will need ongoing assistance for the foreseeable future,” she said. “People just don’t realize that it’s not as easy as saying ‘close it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As authorities struggle to find a answer, proposals have been put forward, some of which have little basis in reality. An idea called for the belugas to be released into the open waters of the Arctic – where whales are a important part of sustenance for Inuit communities.

A proposed sanctuary in the region of Nova Scotia, which has received official endorsement, has been contentious. The future location, which includes extensive space of penned in ocean, is not yet built. Proponents remain hopeful that it could eventually represent a permanent solution for eight of the whales.

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

Some experts say the prospect of a refuge indicates a broader global shift away from captive facilities and could represent a workable plan in the coming months.

The project lead, leader of the sanctuary project, said the facility will replicate the mental engagement and nutrition the whales obtain from specialists, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the well-being of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|