The Marineland belugas keep dying.
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belugas → die → ?
Was it a mistake to move them?
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it → move → them
So far, 6 out of 30 whales transferred out of closed Ontario theme park have died
A few months after a mass relocation effort that stretched across the Atlantic Ocean, six whales have died out of the 30 that were transferred from the now-shuttered Marineland theme park in Niagara Falls, Ont.
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that → transfer → Falls
The most recent death, a beluga named Cyprus, was announced on Sunday by SeaWorld San Diego — one of five facilities in the U.S. and Spain that took in the marine mammals after Marineland said it could no longer care for them.
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it → name → them
The deaths have raised questions about the impact of the transfers on their health and well-being and whether they were fit to travel, and rehashed concerns about the conditions they were living in during the years they spent at Marineland.
But was there ever a better option for the last captive whales and dolphins in Canada?
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they → raise → Canada
Advocacy groups such as Animal Justice have pointed to the federal and provincial governments, as well as Marineland, saying they failed to properly plan for the animals' futures.
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they → point → futures
Experts have said they're worried these deaths are just the beginning.
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deaths → say → ?
Meanwhile, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans maintains the transfers were the best possible rescue plan.
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transfers → maintain → Fisheries
Cyprus, a beluga whale who was rescued from Marineland in Niagara Falls in August, is shown in an undated photo published to social media by SeaWorld San Diego.
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who → rescue → Diego
SeaWorld announced the whale's death on Oct. 18.
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SeaWorld → announce → Oct.
"This was, I would say, almost kind of a Hail Mary effort in terms of trying to make sure that we could provide a better life for these whales," Dr. Doug Whiteside, the head veterinarian at the Calgary Zoo and a member of the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association's animal welfare committee, told CBC News.
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Whiteside → say → News
They were already under chronic stress from the conditions they faced at Marineland, Whiteside said.
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Whiteside → face → Marineland
Transferring them caused additional stress, even though international regulations were followed and they went to high-calibre institutions to receive full-time care, he said.
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he → transfer → care
any sort of acute stress may push them over the edge," he said.
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he → push → edge
While we can't underestimate the stress of the transfers on the whales, that doesn't mean it's not in their best interests to try to give them a better life, said Angela Fernandez, director of the Animal Law Program at the University of Toronto's law faculty.
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Fernandez → underestimate → faculty
"People knew that there were stronger and weaker individuals in the mix, just like there would be among a group of 30 human retirees," Fernandez told CBC News.
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Fernandez → know → News
"You would not evacuate an old-age home and take only the strong individuals if there is capacity to take everyone.
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You → evacuate → everyone
"
What happened to Marineland?
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What → happen → Marineland
Marineland, once Canada's most popular amusement park, has been the subject of controversy for years, with animal rights activists and others vehemently opposed to its practices.
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activists → oppose → practices
A federal law passed in 2019 that bans keeping whales, dolphins and porpoises for breeding or entertainment in Canada shuttered its business model.
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that → pass → model
Then it never recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic's tourism slump.
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it → recover → slump
In 2024, the park was put up for sale and began relocating many of its animals.
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park → put → animals
But in 2025, the federal government blocked Marineland's request to export the remaining belugas to an aquarium in China.
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government → block → China
Marineland responded by asking for emergency funding from Ottawa, warning that it might otherwise have no choice but to euthanize them.
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it → respond → them
Releasing them into the wild would lead to certain death for the mammals raised in captivity, marine experts noted.
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experts → release → captivity
A proposed sanctuary in Nova Scotia was still years away from being developed.
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sanctuary → propose → Scotia
In May, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans endorsed a rescue plan to split up all remaining whales between Oceanogràfic València in Spain and four U.S. locations: Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Shedd Aquarium in Chicago and two SeaWorld facilities in San Diego and San Antonio, Texas.
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Department → endorse → Diego
By the end of August, the last whale had been shipped out.
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whale → ship → August
This situation was entirely avoidable, said Camille Labchuk, executive director of Animal Justice, based in Toronto.
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Labchuk → say → Toronto
The animal law advocacy group had pushed for a proactive plan to move the whales to a seaside sanctuary for years, she said, adding there was still time to plan a responsible transition after the 2019 legislation passed.
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legislation → push → transition
"It was obvious to everyone that Marineland would one day close, because the public no longer wants to see miserable whales swim in circles in tiny tanks," Labchuk said.
"
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Labchuk → close → tanks
A seaside sanctuary was always going to be a challenging undertaking ... but these challenges don't excuse the failure to plan for a better option.
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challenges → go → option
Concerns about fitness to travel
Since their transfer, four whales have died at Chicago's Shedd Aquarium, one whale and a dolphin have died at Oceanogràfic València and another whale has died at SeaWorld San Diego — representing one-fifth of the rescued whales.
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whale → travel → whales
The first, Peekachu, died on Aug. 25, about two weeks after arriving in Chicago.
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first → die → Chicago
Rain was next on Sept. 2, followed by Osiris on Sept. 21, both of them also at Shedd.
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both → follow → Shedd
Necropsies for Peekachu and Rain, and preliminary results for Osiris, identified long-standing intestinal and liver issues that began before their rescue, the aquarium wrote in a blog post.
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aquarium → identify → post
Jelly Bean died on Sept. 17 at Oceanogràfic València, and then Echo, a dolphin, died at the same facility on Sept. 23.
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Echo → die → Sept.
They had been experiencing a list of health complications and organ abnormalities that may have developed prior to the transfer, the aquarium said in a news release.
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aquarium → experience → release
Animal Justice urges investigation into Marineland beluga death in Chicago, wants relocation efforts halted
Marineland belugas that died in Chicago had chronic inflammatory disease, preliminary necropsy findings show
On Oct. 9, Shedd announced the death of Caspian two days earlier, noting it had been concerned about her health for weeks.
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it → urge → weeks
The aquarium hasn't yet released her necropsy results.
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aquarium → release → results
…and 24 more, not listed.
The Aporia
