A shuttered marine park has threatened to euthanise its beluga whales unless a key condition is met.
Aquatic amusement park Marineland has been closed to the public since September 2024, leaving it with no income and 30 beluga whales to care for.
The park recently requested permission for the whales to be exported to China's Chimelong Ocean Kingdom; however, this was denied by the Canadian Fisheries Minister, Joanna Thompson, on the grounds that the mammals would be exploited for entertainment purposes.
Marineland closed its doors last year after facing years of declining visitor attendance. The park has also faced scrutiny over allegations of animal abuse.
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According to The Canadian Press, a total of 20 whales - which includes one orca and 19 belugas - have died while in the park's care since 2019.
The latest move has prompted staff at the defunct park to take drastic measures, demanding the government cover the costs of caring for the whales by Tuesday night (7 October) or they will all be euthanised.
"If we do not receive a response by that date, we will have no choice to presume that the answers to our inquiries are negative," a letter from the park written to Canada's fisheries ministry last Friday (3 October) said.
The letter added that whatever happened to the whales without financial support from the government would be 'a direct consequence of the minister’s decision'.
The threats have been met with widespread condemnation from animal rights groups. Melissa Matlow, a Toronto-based animal welfare adviser at World Animal Protection, told The New York Times that the park's threats were 'repugnant'.
"Threatening to kill all their animals if they don’t get emergency funding is just repugnant," she said in a statement.
"We need to take comfort that this is the last generation of whales and dolphins that will ever have to suffer again in Canada."
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The government department rejected the funding request on Monday, with Thompson providing the following statement: "The fact that Marineland has not planned for a viable alternative despite raising these whales in captivity for many years, does not place the onus on the Canadian government to cover your expenses."
The Tuesday night deadline that the park set has now passed, with the current fate of the whales not immediately clear.
Thompson previously justified her reason for declining the export, saying: "I could not in good conscience approve an export that would perpetuate the treatment these belugas have endured."
She did add that she'd be open to receiving other export requests from the park.
Her ruling is also in line with Canada's 2019 'Free Willy' bill, which banned whales and dolphins from being bred in captivity or used for entertainment.
LADbible has contacted Marineland for comment.
Brenna Cooper