We all know that captivity is horrible for whales, and the Marineland aquatic park facilities in Ontario, Canada are proof. Over the past two years, upwards of nine beluga whales have died at the park. This summer, inspectors with the Canadian Animal Welfare Services determined that the park’s water quality was so bad, it had sent marine mammals locked up there into “distress.” Marineland responded that “an unknown number of whale deaths at the park were not related to the water issues.” Whether it’s Marineland’s sub-par and inadequately repaired water systems that are killing the belugas, or general captivity, one thing is clear: Marineland is Deathland for marine animals like beluga whales.
The main reason we know about these deaths is because Marineland can no longer cover them up by replacing the missing animals with newly-bred calves. Back in 2019, the Canadian government wisely banned breeding programs at sites like Marineland, which put a stop to the park’s non-stop supply of new imprisoned tourist attractions. Without newborn calves, Marineland’s number of beluga whales has been dropping precipitously the past two years — from 54 down to 39 or 40, with five being sent off to an American aquarium. That equates to potentially four or five dead or disappeared beluga whales each year. Clearly Marineland is not equipped to properly care for these captive marine mammals. Canadian authorities must shut down Marineland now!