Chicago aquarium shares health update on Marineland belugas after whale deaths

Trainer Taylor-Lee Dell says goodbye to beluga whale "Tofino," the last whale in captivity in Canada, before being transported by a group of experts from Marineland and several U.S. aquariums onto a truck via a sling before being moved to an aquarium in the U.S., in the final transfer of whales out of the closed park, in Niagara Falls, Ont., on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Carlos Osorio

CHICAGO — A Chicago aquarium says several of the belugas that were transferred to its site from Ontario’s Marineland have health issues.

Shedd Aquarium says in a Friday statement it is conducting round-the-clock supervision and teams are monitoring the whales’ hydration, breathing rates, swim patterns, social interaction and other behaviours.

The aquarium’s update comes after it reported last week that two of the three whales that died at its site in a week’s span were belugas from Marineland, a theme park in Niagara Falls, Ont., that closed after it ran out of money.

Shedd has said that Peekachu, one of the Marineland belugas, died on Aug. 25 at its site two weeks after being relocated.

A 20-year-old beluga named Rain, that was moved from Marineland to the Chicago park in mid-August, also died, as well as a 34-year-old beluga that had lived for decades in Chicago.

Amid the spate of deaths, the Shedd Aquarium says there is still uncertainty surrounding the health of the remaining animals and it is awaiting lab results as the park investigates the deaths.

“Some of the rescued belugas are showing more encouraging signs than others, but several have presented clinical concerns,” Shedd wrote in the statement Friday. “Their condition can change from day to day and, at times, hour to hour.”

The aquarium said belugas get most of their hydration through the fish they eat and while some of the rescued whales are eating regularly, others are not.

As a whole, Shedd said none of the belugas are “where we want them to be from a health standpoint.”

The Marineland belugas were given a clean bill of health in the days before their relocations, with Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson responsible for giving the final approval.

Marineland, which is now up for sale, completed the largest collective move of captive whales the world has ever seen last week, shipping 30 belugas and four dolphins to five aquariums in the United States and Spain over several weeks.

The final move last week brought an end to whale captivity in Canada.

Before their transfers, Marineland threatened to euthanize them if it did not get an emergency cash infusion after the federal government blocked an earlier plan to move the whales to China.

Multiple whales have died after being relocated.

In 2021, Marineland moved five whales to Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut.

Two of those whales died within a year of the move and the third died two years after the transfer. Mystic said the whales had pre-existing conditions while Marineland said they were healthy when they left.

Nineteen belugas, one killer whale and one dolphin died at Marineland between 2019 and 2025.

— with files from Liam Casey

This report by The Canadian Press was first published September 6, 2026.