Marineland of Canada is a closed marine park outside Toronto, Canada. The park is in financial crisis and no longer able to continue the beluga whales’ care. Over the last several months, a consortium of aquariums have collaborated on an exhaustive rescue plan to rehome all the beluga whales. 28 whales will be welcomed at several aquariums: Georgia Aquarium, Shedd Aquarium, SeaWorld San Diego, and SeaWorld San Antonio. Oceanografic Valencia in Spain is also planning to receive whales from Canada but they are still awaiting the necessary permits from their government. Mystic Aquarium, while not taking in any animals, will provide additional capacity and support.
After months of planning and seeking necessary permits, the Canadian and U.S. governments have given the authorizations needed to begin the rescue process.
Teams are preparing for transport, with the move happening over the next several weeks or months. This process will take as long as it needs to protect the health, safety, and wellbeing of every whale.
Once the whales arrive, animal care and veterinary teams will closely monitor their health, activity, and social groupings.
Care teams will slowly introduce the new whales to Georgia Aquarium’s existing beluga pod, allowing them to socialize at their own pace.
No one is more suited or equipped to care for beluga whales than accredited aquariums. With decades of cetacean (whales and dolphins) experience in their health care, social dynamics, and physiology, rehoming the beluga whales to accredited aquariums is in their best interest. They will receive world-class health care, enriching interactions with their care team, specialized and individualized diets, and playful social groupings with the four other beluga whales at Georgia Aquarium.
There’s still a lot we don’t know about these whales. As our teams monitor them, we’ll learn more about the medical care they need and how we can tailor care to each individual animal. Some of these whales could be in need of long-term or critical care which we are prepared to provide.
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