American aquariums say they are working to provide future for Marineland’s belugas

Beluga whales swim in a tank at Marineland amusement park in Niagara Falls, Ont., Friday, June 9, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

TORONTO — American aquariums say they visited Marineland last week with the goal of “providing hope and a future” for 30 beluga whales that face euthanasia should they not be moved.

The Niagara Falls, Ont., park presented a plan to the federal government this week to export its belugas and four dolphins south of the border.

• READ MORE: Marineland presents plan to federal government to ship remaining whales, dolphins to U.S.: CP sources

Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson has said she hopes to decide on the export permit application soon.

Sources at Marineland who are not authorized to speak publicly about the situation said the park is running out of money to care for its animals and euthanasia remains an option for the whales and dolphins.

The sources said a euthanasia plan is in place for the animals and the park will act on those plans imminently should the minister deny its export plans.

The park is in discussions with Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta, Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut and SeaWorld, which has several U.S. locations.

Three of those United States-based parks said it is premature to formally commit to taking in Marineland’s belugas, which are the last whales being held in captivity in Canada.

“The focus at this stage must be on the animals themselves,” said Georgia Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium and Shedd Aquarium in a statement.

“To that end, experts remain dedicated to using observations from last week’s visit to inform plans with the goal of providing hope and a future for these animals.”

They said Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums, a non-profit industry group, invited a team of “internationally recognized aquatic behavioural and veterinary experts to Marineland of Canada to observe 30 belugas currently living on-site.”

Marineland representatives met with Thompson on Wednesday. The park told The Canadian Press that it presented the minister with “a definitive and urgent rescue solution for the whales,” but it did not provide details.

“The survival of these whales depends solely on the swift issuance of these permits,” Marineland said on Wednesday.

The sources said the park’s four dolphins will also head to the U.S. should Thompson agree.

The fisheries minister used her power under a 2019 law that banned whale and dolphin captivity to deny an export application Marineland made in October, when it sought to sell the whales to an aquarium in China.

Thompson said in denying the sale to Chimelong Ocean Kingdom that she would not subject the whales to a future performing in captivity, which is consistent with the federal law that is known colloquially as the Free Willy bill.

The law made breeding illegal, which forced Marineland to split up its male and female belugas, banned performances and forbade the importation or exportation of marine mammals. The minister can make an exception if it is in the best interest of the animals.

But Thompson said at the time that it was not in the best interest of Marineland’s belugas to send them to China. In response, Marineland demanded emergency funding to care for the whales and threatened to begin euthanizing them. No funding was provided.

Marineland shuttered its doors to the public in 2024. It has been trying to sell its swath of land near Horseshoe Falls since 2023. Sources have confirmed that a deal is in place for the land, which would be used for residential and commercial purposes, but the sale is conditional upon the animals being moved.

In addition to the belugas and dolphins, several seals and sea lions remain at the park, as do a dozen bears and several hundred deer. The park previously moved its complement of bison and penguins.

Twenty whales — one killer whale and 19 belugas — have died at Marineland since 2019, according to an ongoing tally created by The Canadian Press based on internal records and official statements.

Former Marineland whale trainers support the proposed move to the United States.

“I am super excited about them going to the United States because the facilities proposed are really amazing with amazing care teams,” said Kristy Burgess.

Burgess has said that Marineland fired her in early March, shortly after The Canadian Press learned about the death of Eos, a juvenile beluga that died in February. She later shared with The Canadian Press that she believes she was fired over the leak even though she wasn’t the source.

“I’m hoping that the difference between the States and China is enough for the minister to think this is at least better than euthanasia,” she said this week about Marineland’s latest plan.

Sending the whales to the U.S. is the only option remaining, said Phil Demers, who became an outspoken critic of the park when he quit his job as a whale trainer in 2012.

“In the interest of the animals and the urgency of what is now being framed as a rescue, appropriately, hopefully she allows for this to happen as promptly and as quickly as possible,” Demers said.

“Canada can then celebrate that we have eradicated whale captivity in our country and hope that spreads around the world like wildfire.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 23, 2026.

Liam Casey, The Canadian Press