Featured Image Credit: Neil Fisher/Vancouver Aquarium
The Vancouver Aquarium has had a gravely emotional couple of weeks. Our hearts are deeply saddened to hear that not only did they lose one beloved member of their aquarium family, but two. A pair of resident beluga whales: Aurora and Qila.
The mother-daughter duo helped educate millions of aquarium visitors and contributed to groundbreaking conservation research for over two decades. The Canada based aquarium noted on their AquaBlog that “Scientists here have studied their physiology, learned about their hearing and acoustic abilities, collected baseline data for studies in the wild, and discovered unique vocalizations between beluga whale mothers and calves, called contact calls.” That’s quite the resume.
Aurora arrived at the Vancouver Aquarium in 1990 when she was found in the Hudson Bay. In order to better understand the majestic mammals and protect their species, Aurora has mated with several beluga whales and produced several offspring over the years. In 1996 these reproductions efforts allowed Aurora to give birth to Qila, who has called the Vancouver Aquarium her home ever since.
It all began on Tuesday November 15th when Qila (21) began showing symptoms of abdominal discomfort and nausea. The marine mammal care team also noted that she showed zero interest in interacting with the staff. Unfortunately, the beautiful beluga quickly slipped away the next morning on Wednesday the 16th.
The aquarium remembered Qila in blog post that said, “She was a delight for our team of staff and volunteers every single day – always the first to give us a wink, a little tail flap or a head bob in the morning. It is difficult to put into words the love we all had for her. We will miss her immensely.”
Due to the fact that less than 100 beluga whales have been studied in captivity, narrowing down a COD has been extremely difficult. Labs from around the globe partnered up with Dr. Martin Haulena, the Vancouver Aquarium’s Head Vet, to run tests and find answers. By the end of the week, Aurora began displaying similar symptoms to Qila’s.
The marine mammal care staff monitored the mother beluga, who was refusing to eat, around the clock and adjusted treatment based on any new findings. Every three hours Aurora was given fluids and medication. While they did not know for sure what was ailing the white whale, Dr. Haulena had to assume that it was related to what caused the daughter’s death.
An Aquarium official made the comment that she was “looking brighter,” after the whale began to show some promising signs of improvement. But Aurora’s health eventually took a turn for the worst. On November 26th, after relentless efforts to treat the unknown illness, the aquarium announced the passing of their beloved beluga on their Facebook page:
“After a determined around-the-clock effort by animal care staff and the veterinary team, she slipped away this evening surrounded by the people who loved her, some whom have cared for her since she first arrived in 1990. To our team, Aurora was a part of our family and her loss is absolutely heartbreaking. The marine mammal care team working night and day to care for her are our true heroes, even if we lost the battle.”
John Nightingale, President and CEO of the aquarium released a statement saying,”The passing of two animals in a situation like this, never mind two whales, in a two week period is unprecedented in our 60-year history.”
A recent discovery by Dr. Martin Haulena and his team showed that Aurora had severe liver damage that was not detected in previous blood work. The head vet reported that “Our most likely culprits for this are either a virus or toxin given the course of disease, given the lack of significant findings both in clinical diagnostics and early post mortem results.”
The investigation surrounding the two belugas’ mysterious and sudden passing is still underway. The aquarium’s facility and operations, like water quality and diet, will be under a “full 360” review. A team of pathologist and forensic medical experts are going to uncover what exactly happened to the two amazing mammals.
Curiously… they are not ruling out a potential poisoning scenario. Nightingale wrapped up his comment by stating, “Absolutely nothing is off the table.”
The Vancouver Aquarium was opened in 1956 and since they have had over 35 million visitors walk through their doors at Stanley Park. The world renowned facility is dedicated to “effecting the conservation of aquatic life through display and interpretation, education, research and direct action.”
We are deeply saddened to see such tragedy strike at such an amazing aquarium.