Two Smiling Beluga Whales Are Saved From Sad Life As Performing Animals In Aquarium

Aug 22, 2020

Little White and Little Grey are the two beluga whales that have been rescued from captivity in China, where they have been entertaining humans for nearly a decade. Last June, the whales were moved to the world's first open-sea whale sanctuary located in Iceland.

These two whales were captured while still calves and spent some time at a Russian facility before being bought by the Open Water Aquarium in Shanghai. A British charity, Sea Life Trust, rescued these beautiful mammals and gave them a chance to enjoy their natural habitat once again. The pair had to be moved 6,000 miles to their new home.

The whales started to prepare for the 6,000-mile journey long before their travel date, according to The Dodo. Their trainers had to train them on how to increase their breath-hold and get their physical fitness ready for life at the bay.

Their handlers have also been practicing how to pull them up from the water and increased their diet of herring on the plane in order to satisfy their strong appetites, according to the Associated Press. The trainers say they will miss them dearly after working with them for so many years. But they are also happy that they will be going home after so many years.

The two female belugas had a remarkable journey where they traveled by road in a truck to the airport in China before being transferred to a Boeing 747-400ERF cargo aircraft. The final part of their journey involved yet another truck and a tugboat.

Custom made slings made with foam cushioning and cranes were used to move them over the land. Moving them across the land was not an easy task, and the experts had to use lots of water and ice to keep them watered down. Footage and pictures from the journey captured the two looking ecstatic to finally leave their concrete home.

According to the Sea Life Trust, Little White and Little Grey are the first beluga whales to live in the new sanctuary. And they hope that more aquariums and parks holding whales and dolphins for human amusement will release the mammals to retire in the sanctuary in the future.

The Merlin Entertainments Company, which owns Sea Life centers, bought the Changfeng Ocean World aquarium in China a year after the whales were taken there. All this time they have been striving to find a new larger and more natural home for the belugas, they stated on their website.

The belugas arrived at their new home safely and were excited to get back into their natural habitat. They have been living in a care facility at Klettsvik Bay in a bayside care pool as they prepare to be released into the larger sanctuary. Little White and Little Grey were to be moved in early July, although the trip was delayed due to a reported bacterial stomach infection that they both developed.

While at the pool, they got a chance to adjust to the cold Icelandic environment. Belugas are destined for cold waters, so the low temperatures and big swimming space will suit them perfectly once they adjust. In their new home, they can live between 40 and 60 years.

The rescuing of Little White and Little Grey, thanks to animal rights activists' efforts, shows that the marine mammal entertainment industry is being revolutionized. It gives hope for the other more than 300 belugas held captive around the world. The smiles on these magnificent creatures will light up your day.

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