Three beluga whales die at Chicago aquarium, including one recently rescued from Canada
Three beluga whales have died at Chicago's Shedd Aquarium, including one recently relocated from a shuttered Canadian park. Necropsies are underway.
Chicago's Shedd Aquarium has announced the deaths of three beluga whales, including one that had just arrived from Canada as part of a large-scale rescue effort. The aquarium said the deaths were unexpected and that the causes are not yet known.
The most recent death was Rain, a 20-year-old female who was among four belugas transferred to Shedd in mid-August from Marineland, a closed water park in Ontario. Another whale from that group, named Peekachu, died last week. The third whale, a 34-year-old male named Beethoven, had been a resident of the Chicago facility for decades.
The aquarium stated that necropsies, blood tests, and additional examinations are underway. Officials acknowledged that there is still much to learn about what led to the deaths.
Shedd Aquarium is one of several institutions participating in an international mission to rescue 30 beluga whales and four dolphins from Marineland, which lost its ability to care for the animals. The Chicago facility has accepted 10 belugas in total, with the last two—young males named Gimli and Yukon—arriving just this week.
Provincial government data indicates that 20 whales, including 19 belugas and one killer whale, have died at Marineland since 2019. The transfer process for the animals involved custom slings and temperature-controlled containers, with round-the-clock monitoring upon arrival.
Canadian Minister of Fisheries Joanne Thompson expressed sadness over Rain's death and offered condolences to the care staff, stating that the government had taken reasonable steps to ensure the safe rescue of the whales.
Other facilities taking in animals from Marineland include the Georgia Aquarium, SeaWorld locations in San Diego and San Antonio, and Oceanogràfic València in Spain.