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The beluga known as Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie Botts is an charming small “sweetheart”. The whale Orion – called “Onion” – is a large but guardian-like companion. Another whale, Zephyr has “endless energy” and moves like a worm. Lillooet the beluga is the “biggest cuddle bug” with a heart of gold.

Thirty captive beluga whales in a Canada-based entertainment facility have been entangled in a struggle between a shuttered park, local and national governments and animal rights activists.

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 confinement, have been closely studied by the people who interact with them daily.

After the Canadian government prevented the transfer of the belugas to a foreign facility, the struggling amusement park near the famous falls where they are kept warned to put them down unless the authorities pays for the cost of keeping them alive. The nation’s fisheries minister has rejected that demand, placing the thirty whales in an ever more uncertain position.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Scientists say that belugas’ neural makeup, along with their vocal imitation skills, cognitive challenges and communal behavior indicate they are deeply intelligent creatures – something one caretaker discovered directly.

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

“Building up those relationships over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of love. At the beginning, 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 magical and rewarding.”

The trainer knew the whales were exceptionally cognitive, but she says she was nevertheless astounded by the subtleties and idiosyncrasies in their characters. She developed a particular love for Eve and Cleopatra with different personalities.

“One whale accepted me. Cleo demanded work,” she said. “Each changed the way I view bonding.”

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 park, seven belugas and the park’s one orca, Kiska, passed away. In all, nineteen belugas have died at the park since recent years, a statistic 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 public over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand effects of the shutdown. “Concrete is deteriorating from the tanks because they’re in disrepair and not being repaired. The whales are curious and so they grab fragments and swim around with chunks in their jaws. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not respond to a questionnaire, but earlier claimed: “The whales … receive far better health care and constant care than any individual in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Fate in Limbo and Proposed Solutions

Burgess was dismissed from the park in the spring following the demise of Eos, an sick beluga the caretakers had to humanely kill. She said the facility believed particulars of the incident were disclosed to the press and she was let go shortly thereafter.

The ambiguity over the whales’ future has left her and staff members in anguish. She says the facility’s warning to kill its whales is a leverage tool and is a “practically unfeasible” task, adding any plans to humanely kill even a individual beluga would require “immense staff”, vehicles and machinery.

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

Burgess supports requests for the whales to be removed promptly from the park, with its crumbling tanks and shrinking team.

In recent months, the nation’s government official denied a bid to export the whales to an overseas location.

“To approve the request would have meant a ongoing existence in confinement and a reversion to performance for audiences,” the official wrote. “As society, we know that belugas are meant for the ocean, not in enclosures for our enjoyment. I could not in clear conscience approve an relocation that would continue the treatment these belugas have experienced.”

But Burgess said the official’s remarks reveal a wider lack of awareness of the realities of living conditions for belugas born in captivity.

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

Sanctuary Proposal and Ongoing Debate

As authorities attempt to find a answer, proposals have surfaced, some of which have questionable practicality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be let go into the open waters of northern regions – where whales are a key source of nourishment for Inuit communities.

A proposed protected area in the region of eastern Canada, which has received official endorsement, has proven highly debated. The prospective facility, which includes extensive space of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain positive that it could eventually represent a permanent solution for a number of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among caretakers she’s consulted, there is “skepticism there” about what she said is “only an untested concept” in the whales’ fate.

Some experts say the possibility of a sanctuary reflects a worldwide trend away from animal displays and could represent a workable plan in the near future.

An official, director of the sanctuary project, said the facility will simulate the mental engagement and nutrition the whales get from specialists, albeit in a more expansive space. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|