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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s offspring Bertie is an adorable small “sweetheart”. Orion – nicknamed “Onion Ring” – is a sizeable but guardian-like friend. Zephyr has “constant motion” and sways like a wiggly creature. Lillooet the beluga is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based amusement park have been caught in a tussle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and advocacy groups.

But those most familiar with the whales say the heated debate over their destiny often ignores the individual traits of the whales who, after living their entire lives in enclosed habitats, have been thoroughly researched by the people who work with them regularly.

After the national authorities prevented the transfer of the belugas to China, the controversial attraction near Niagara Falls where they are housed warned to put them down unless the authorities funds the upkeep of their survival. Canada’s fisheries minister has rejected that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an dangerously unstable circumstance.

Intelligent Sea Creatures

Researchers say that beluga whales’ neural makeup, along with their sound replication, problem solving and group interactions indicate they are remarkably smart creatures – something a former trainer learned personally.

Burgess spent several years as a beluga trainer, a job that required building relationships of the marine predators.

“Building up those relationships over time takes a lot of regularity and a lot of love. At the outset, they’re very cautious of you,” she said. “Over time, 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 nonetheless amazed by the subtleties and quirks in their dispositions. She cultivated a deep bond for a pair of whales with contrasting temperaments.

“Eve chose me. Cleo made me earn it,” she said. “They altered the way I view relationships.”

Public Concerns and Deteriorating Conditions

Her interaction with the whales evolved against a background of increasing societal concern to their enclosure.

During her time at the facility, multiple belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, passed away. In all, 19 belugas have died at the park since recent years, a number which the facility ascribes to expected lifespan, but which activists say points to the poor conditions in which they were kept.

The park did not open to the guests over the summer, but the former trainer says she observed directly consequences of the cessation. “Structural materials is falling apart from the pools because they’re degrading and not being fixed. The whales are inquisitive and so they pick it up and move about with chunks in their jaws. It’s distressing to see.”

The park did not respond to a inquiry, but previously stated: “The whales … receive far superior health care and around the clock care than any person in the UK, or other places.”

Fate in Limbo and Potential Resolutions

Burgess was fired from the facility in the spring following the demise of a beluga, an ailing beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the facility suspected details of the death were disclosed to the media and she was fired not long after.

The uncertainty over the whales’ future has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the park’s warning to euthanize its whales is a leverage tool and is a “logistically impossible” task, adding any attempts to put down even a one beluga would require “significant personnel”, vehicles and heavy equipment.

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

She backs requests for the whales to be transferred immediately from the park, with its deteriorating pools and reduced personnel.

In the autumn, the nation’s fisheries minister rejected a proposal to transfer the whales to China.

“To approve the application would have meant a perpetual situation in captivity and a reversion to display for amusement,” the minister wrote. “As the public, we know that marine mammals belong in the ocean, not in pools for our enjoyment. I could not in ethical standing authorize an export that would continue the conditions these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the minister’s comments reflect a wider misunderstanding of the circumstances of living conditions for belugas living their whole lives in enclosures.

“The society needs to grasp these are whales that have lived entirely in confinement and they will need ongoing assistance for the rest of their years,” she said. “People just don’t comprehend that it’s not as simple as saying ‘end operations’.”

Alternative Habitat and Continuing Discussion

As officials attempt to find a solution, proposals have been put forward, some of which have minimal feasibility. One proposal called for the belugas to be let go into the wilds of northern regions – where whales are a key source of nourishment for local populations.

A planned refuge in the province of Nova Scotia, which now received regulatory clearance, has proven most controversial. The prospective facility, which includes extensive space of protected cove, doesn’t yet exist. Proponents remain optimistic that it could eventually represent a long term resolution for eight of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among staff she’s consulted, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “merely an trial” in the whales’ fate.

Different voices say the idea of a refuge indicates a changing attitudes away from zoos and aquariums and could represent a viable approach in the near future.

Charles Vinick, leader of the plan, said the facility will mimic the cognitive activities and feeding regimen the whales receive from specialists, albeit in a significantly bigger space. He said after the medical condition of whales is fully assessed, which could take months|an extended period|