Letter from Montreal
At Marineland amusement park in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, June 9, 2023. CHRIS YOUNG / AP
Separated by an ocean but united by a shared fate. In both Canada and France, the future of Marineland’s marine mammals is more uncertain than ever. Located near the world-famous Niagara Falls in Ontario, the Canadian aquatic park – which is not part of the same group as Marineland Antibes in France – has entered a painful decline.
Marineland Canada has not reopened to the public since the end of summer 2024, officially due to severe financial difficulties. In its heyday, the enthusiasm it generated after opening in the 1960s now seems a distant memory. In yet another setback in early October, the federal government refused its request to transfer its 30 remaining beluga whales to a theme park in China.
Dissatisfied and evidently inflamed, Marineland threatened to euthanize the marine mammals if it did not receive emergency funds. “We are fully indebted and rapidly running out of resources to provide adequate care for the whales,” the park wrote in a letter to the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans on October 3. The letter presented an ultimatum: If no positive response was received by October 7, the belugas would face a tragic fate, which would be “a direct consequence of the Minister’s decision,” Marineland warned.
You have 78.81% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.