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<\/a>On Aug. 26, Shedd Aquarium announced that Peekachu, a 23-year-old female beluga (Delphinapterus leucas<\/em>) who had arrived at the facility on Aug. 13 and was blind in one eye, had \u201cpassed away suddenly\u201d the day before. The following week, on Sept. 3, a 20-year-old female named Rain who had arrived at Shedd Aquarium along with Peekachu also died.<\/p>\n An initial report found \u201cchronic inflammatory disease\u201d in both whales, with foreign objects such as bird feathers, sticks, and large rocks inside Peekachu. A detailed final report, announced by Shedd on Oct. 9, said Peekachu\u2019s examination \u201cidentified age-related tissue changes, preexisting hypertension \u2026 and lung scarring consistent with an earlier injury or resolved pneumonia,\u201d while Rain had \u201csubstantial inflammation\u201d throughout her body. It also said that external experts concluded \u201cunderlying diseases may have made both whales more susceptible to cardiovascular stress, which contributed to their deaths.\u201d<\/p>\n On Sept. 18, Canadian state broadcaster CBC reported that Jellybean, a 19-year-old female transferred to Oceanogr\u00e0fic Val\u00e8ncia in Spain, had died. The facility has not announced a cause of death. On Sept. 24, it announced the death of Echo, one of the bottlenose dolphins (genus Tursiops<\/em>) from Marineland, who had arrived with \u201cserious vision problems.\u201d It said her condition had deteriorated rapidly, and that she\u2019d had \u201cdifficulties swallowing and respiratory problems.\u201d<\/p>\n On Sept. 21 Shedd Aquarium announced the death of Osiris, a 25-year-old female beluga who had \u201cremained a whale of clinical concern\u201d since she\u2019d arrived, despite recent \u201cencouraging signs\u201d in her health, according to the announcement. A preliminary examination revealed she had chronic liver disease, the facility said on Oct. 9.<\/p>\n The latest death from the aquarium was that of Caspian, a 27-year-old female, who died Oct. 7. The beluga had \u201ccontinued to eat less than her full diet\u201d in recent days, and \u201cher condition deteriorated.\u201d Despite being placed on life support, she did not recover, according to a statement from the facility.<\/p>\n On Oct. 18, SeaWorld San Diego announced the death of Cyprus, a nine-year-old male who came to the facility on Aug. 22, 2026. Although he had been eating well since his arrival and adjusting to his new home, he stopped eating two days before his death, the facility said. An ultrasound examination showed his intestinal tract wasn\u2019t working well, and indicated a \u201clife-threatening condition\u201d.<\/p>\n Naomi Rose, a marine mammal biologist with U.S.-based animal rights NGO Animal Welfare Institute, who has followed the plight of the captive belugas for years, said the deaths came as no surprise.<\/p>\n \u201cEverybody involved in this, including the facilities that were receiving them, including the governments, and Marineland itself, as well as rational people in the animal community, were perfectly well aware that there were going to be some deaths,\u201d she said in an interview with Mongabay. \u201cThese whales weren\u2019t well. Their health was suffering from the care \u2014 such as it was \u2014 that they were receiving at Marineland.\u201d<\/p>\n In the wild, belugas can live up to 80 years. But in captivity, they live less than 30 years on average. Those in Marineland had spent years confined to small, concrete tanks \u2014 an environment vastly different from their natural ocean habitat \u2014 with persistent water quality issues. For highly intelligent, social cetaceans, such isolation often results in extreme stress, stereotypy (which can include repetitive behaviors and ingesting foreign objects), and metabolic diseases, Rose said.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not blaming the rescuers for the deaths of these animals. They\u2019ve done the best they could. These deaths were inevitable, and there will be more deaths,\u201d Rose said. \u201cTransporting sick animals is dangerous. Leaving them where they were was more dangerous. This was the best of a bad job.\u201d Rose is a founding board member of the under-construction Whale Sanctuary Project, which had offered to take some of the belugas. Marineland declined the offer.<\/p>\n Melissa Matlow from World Animal Protection Canada, an animal welfare nonprofit, said in an email statement to Mongabay that the spate of deaths \u201craises more concern that the remaining beluga whales are also suffering from poor health\u201d and \u201creinforces why keeping whales and dolphins in captivity for entertainment purposes must be phased out globally.\u201d<\/p>\n In an email response to Mongabay\u2019s questions about the health of the 15 belugas under SeaWorld\u2019s care, the company\u2019s chief zoological officer, Chris Dold, said the whales \u201ccontinue to be in stable health\u201d and that the team is \u201cclosely monitoring the whales\u2019 health and behavior, including their eating, swimming, and socialization patterns\u201d as they adjust to their new homes. \u201cThese early signs are encouraging, but it would be premature to say these belugas are fully in the clear,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n On Sept. 14., SeaWorld shared a video showing the last four belugas to arrive at the San Antonio facility \u2014 Tofino, Tank, Odin, and Orion \u2014 and a trainer saying the whales were exploring their new home, getting to know their trainers, and eating well. In the post announcing Cyprus\u2019 death, SeaWorld said the whales will need \u201ca considerable amount of time\u201d to adjust to new surroundings.<\/p>\n A spokesperson from Georgia Aquarium said the two male belugas in its care, Balor and Zephyr, were \u201cadjusting well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt will take several months to over a year for them to fully acclimate, so we are continuously monitoring them,\u201d a spokesperson told Mongabay in an email statement. \u201cThey are both eating, interacting with their trainers, and have integrated into our existing beluga whale pod and are showing positive signs with their behavior and health.\u201d<\/p>\n The spokesperson also said the animals have access to all beluga enclosures, including public areas, and can choose where they want to go. \u201cAs of right now and for the foreseeable future, they are not involved in any beluga encounters,\u201d the spokesperson said. Paying visitors can interact with the whales as part of Georgia Aquarium\u2019s Beluga Encounter, priced from $89.99.<\/p>\n Johnny Ford, Shedd Aquarium\u2019s vice president of communications, said the facility regularly shares updates on the rescued belugas. According to a recent update, the six surviving whales are eating their full diets and \u201creaching new milestones in their care.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWith each examination, it is becoming unquestionably clear that the rescued whales we lost were made vulnerable by chronic and severe illness,\u201d Ford said in an email statement to Mongabay. \u201cA lot of what we are uncovering is invisible day-to-day, especially given how well belugas are able to mask their discomfort.\u201d<\/p>\n Oceanogr\u00e0fic Val\u00e8ncia did not respond to Mongabay\u2019s queries. On Oct. 7, it shared on Facebook that Cleopatra, the surviving rescued beluga, \u201chas been gradually getting used to a new environment\u201d and is swimming with two other belugas, \u201cparticipating with them in feeding and enrichment sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n As these belugas adjust to their new homes, conservationists say they should not be bred. The agreement signed between the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. facilities does not restrict breeding them. Previously, these facilities have said breeding is not their priority, and their focus is the well-being of the rescued belugas. However, they have not categorically committed to not breeding the belugas.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile this was the last generation of whales and dolphins that ever had to suffer for entertainment in Canada \u2014 we must make sure it is the last to suffer in the US and globally,\u201d Matlow said. \u201cWe urge the AZA aquariums to not breed them or use them for entertainment in keeping with Canadian law.\u201d<\/p>\n The belugas and dolphins at Marineland may have found new homes at what Rose called \u201cthe four best beluga facilities in the world,\u201d but the only way to avoid repeating the Marineland saga is to stop keeping and breeding these animals in captivity, she said.<\/p>\n As public backlash against keeping cetaceans in captivity grows, some countries have passed laws restricting the import of wild whales or banning keeping them altogether. A few, like France, have decided to get rid of all current captive cetaceans, moving them to new homes. But these are hard to find, according to Rose. In June, France announced that a mother-and-son orca duo (Orcinus orca<\/em>) at another shuttered park, Marineland Antibes (not related to Marineland Canada), would be sent to a park in Spain. But so far, Spain hasn\u2019t issued permits for these transfers, and the orcas remain at the closed park.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is so archaic. Circuses are going out of business, left, right, and center. Who thinks it\u2019s cool to make tigers jump through flaming hoops anymore? Why is it still OK to have dolphins do these silly tricks?\u201d Rose said. \u201cThey are not commodities. They are not to be bought and sold. They are not to be held for our entertainment. They are wildlife species that have a very large function in their ecosystems, and they should be left there.\u201d<\/p>\nUnsurprising deaths<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Updates on the survivors<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Marineland a wake-up call for ending cetacean captivity, activists say<\/strong><\/h2>\n