Three captive female beluga whales due to be transferred to the world’s first whale sanctuary are going to have to go to “Beluga Boot Camp” before they are ready, the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society announced in May.
Jun Jun, Little Grey and Little White have been in a concrete aquarium in Shanghai, China since being captured in Russian waters in 2003 and 2011. When the aquarium was bought in 2012 by Merlin Entertainments work began to transfer them to the world’s first sanctuary for captive whales.
But before they can be taken there by truck and aeroplane the belugas will need to put on blubber to cope with the colder water of the sanctuary, hold their breath for longer to cope with its deeper space and to recognise dangerous objects they might encounter there. As part of their Beluga Boot Camp they will undergo a fitness regime to be physically and mentally prepared for the move, WDC said. It is expected to take several months before they are ready.
The exact location and nature of the sanctuary is due to be announced shortly. It will almost certainly be a sea cove in North America.
Photo: Stephen McCulloch From CS16 June-July 2017