Six belugas from a group of 30 have died in the past two months. These whales were part of a rescue mission that relocated them from a marine park in Canada to various facilities in the U.S. and Spain. They were moved in July and August after spending over a year at Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario, which closed to visitors in 2025. These belugas were among the last captive whales in Canada, following the enactment of the Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act in 2019. This legislation banned the captivity, breeding, and sale of cetaceans, which impacted Marineland’s operations.
After facing uncertainty about their future—including concerns over euthanasia and discussions about transferring them to an entertainment park in China—a group of aquariums connected to the U.S. Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) coordinated the transfer of the belugas. Sixteen of the whales were sent to SeaWorld in California and Texas, ten were placed at Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, two went to the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, and two were transported to Oceanogràfic València in Spain. Oceanogràfic also took in four bottlenose dolphins.
On August 26, Shedd Aquarium reported the death of Peekachu, a 23-year-old female beluga. She had been at Shedd since August 13 and was known to be blind. This article was originally published on Mongabay. What do you think about the situation with marine life in captivity?
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Source: Mongabay Animals, by Autumn Spanne