Two beluga whales settled into their new home — a 2-million-gallon salt water pool — in Texas on Tuesday following an international relocation mission from a shuttered Canadian theme park.
The whales, named Bertie Bott and Frankie, traveled more than 1,500 miles from Niagara Falls, Ontario, to SeaWorld San Antonio. The same trip also brought an additional four belugas to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.
The move was a culmination of nearly two years of international coordination, bringing six of an expected 28 whales to aquariums across the United States.
“I can’t help but get just a big giant smile speaking about them,” Steve Aible, SeaWorld San Antonio’s vice president of zoological operations, told CBS News while standing in front of the pool temporarily housing the 1,200-pound animals.
Aible was one of 10 caretakers who joined the whales on the journey from Marineland that included rides on flat-bed trucks and a cargo plane.
“Who would ever think that you’ve got a chance to fly with a whale?” Aible said he recalled thinking while in the air.
Veterinarians specializing in marine mammal medicine and animal care were also on board to constantly monitor the belugas’ conditions throughout the trip.
Marineland closed to the public in 2024 but has remained in possession of the animals, which it says it lacks the resources to continue caring for. Around a year after closing, the park said it would have no choice but to euthanize the whales if a relocation plan or additional funding was not secured.
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued relocation approvals in July to ensure the belugas receive medical treatment and care that is not otherwise available, saying that “there are no other facilities in Canada that are able to provide the whales husbandry or medical care.”
In San Antonio, Bertie and Frankie are exceeding their caretakers’ expectations by exhibiting engaging behavior and maintaining a steady appetite.
“They’re going to just have a much more dynamic and exciting environment here,” Aible said of the two whales. “Not because Marineland was doing anything wrong or bad, but just strictly because Marineland had stopped functioning as a working theme park and we are not.”
Caretakers will continue performing consistent medical assessments on the animals before introducing them to the eight belugas housed at the park.
Another 11 whales from Marineland are set to come to SeaWorld San Antonio, according to the park. The remaining whales will travel to aquariums in Georgia, Chicago, San Diego and Spain.
“Tens of thousands of people … are going to be able to enjoy these animals,” Aible said. “And we can’t wait to share them with all the folks who come through our gates.”