CHICAGO – Three beluga whales have died at Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium after an international rescue effort brought two of them from a closed marine park in Canada.
Rain, a 20-year-old female and Peekachu were among a group transferred from Marineland in Ontario to Shedd Aquarium in mid-August. The aquarium said both died shortly after their arrival as caretakers tried to support them through the transition. The third beluga, a 34-year-old male named Beethoven, was an established member of the aquarium’s resident pod and had lived there for decades.
Shedd Aquarium announced that the causes of the deaths remain unknown. The aquarium said, “Necropsies, blood tests and additional exams” are underway to determine how the whales died. “These deaths were unexpected and there is still much we do not know about what led to them,” officials said in the statement.
The international rescue mission was designed to relocate 30 beluga whales and four dolphins from Marineland after the park closed and could no longer provide care. Shedd Aquarium accepted 10 belugas as part of the effort, with the last two arrivals, Gimli and Yukon, joining the group earlier this week.
As part of the same operation, about a dozen belugas were relocated to SeaWorld San Antonio this summer. Animal care teams at SeaWorld are closely monitoring the whales as they adjust to their new habitat, watching their eating habits and behavior as part of ongoing care.
In a recent update, SeaWorld San Antonio said on social media that “they are being monitored carefully as they transition to their new home.”
Canadian Minister of Fisheries Joanne Thompson shared her reaction to the recent deaths. She said she was “saddened” to hear of Rain’s death, adding that Canada’s government “has taken reasonable steps to ensure the safe rescue of the whales.”
Other facilities, including the Georgia Aquarium, SeaWorld locations in San Diego and San Antonio and Oceanogràfic Valencia in Spain, are also housing rescued belugas from Marineland. The Georgia Aquarium said the two whales it received are “settling in nicely,” though full adjustment will take months.
Officials with Shedd Aquarium said the rescue operation was highly complex, involving custom-made slings and temperature-controlled containers to move the whales. Since their arrival, staff have monitored every whale’s health and behavior minute by minute.
The investigation into the recent deaths at Shedd Aquarium is ongoing as officials work to determine what happened.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.