Four belugas and a dolphin die after being transferred from Marineland Canada

Threatened with euthanasia in a closed animal park in Canada, four belugas and a dolphin have died since their highly publicized transfer this summer to aquariums in the United States and Spain.

The latest, a dolphin named Echo, died at the Oceanografic in Valencia, Spain, where he had arrived with “serious vision problems and other clinical history,” the Spanish aquarium announced Thursday. This death comes after that, in recent weeks, of three belugas transferred to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago and another beluga in Valencia.

The saga of the transfer of around thirty belugas and dolphins from Marineland Canada park to aquariums in the United States and Spain was highly publicized this summer in Canada, as were the deaths which have followed one another in recent weeks.

“Poor living conditions”

Closed since 2024, Marineland, which was in the past a lucrative tourist attraction near Niagara Falls, had claimed that it could no longer cover the costs of their care and had threatened to euthanize them if no place to accommodate them was found.

Former park trainer turned whistleblower, Phil Demers told AFP on Thursday that he was not “surprised” by these deaths, which he linked to the “poor living conditions” of these animals at Marineland. “The animals were already sick before being transferred,” he accused. “It’s a disaster,” he added, saying he expected “more deaths.”

Marineland has been at the center of controversy for years. According to the Canadian press, 20 animals, including 19 belugas, died there between 2019 and 2025. The park assured that these were “natural deaths” but the animal protection services of the province of Ontario are investigating possible mistreatment.