Inside the Wild Rescue Mission That Took 4 Beluga Whales to Chicago
Beluga whales were in danger of getting euthanized after a Canadian theme park went bust. WIRED spoke with some of the scientists behind the groundbreaking rescue mission.
In a groundbreaking rescue mission, four beluga whales from Marineland of Niagara Falls were successfully transported to Chicago's Shedd Aquarium in January 2026. The team, led by Shedd's director of animal behavior and training, Tang and Charlie Jacobsma, chartered a Boeing 777 freighter to fly the whales to Toronto's Pearson Airport before their final journey to the US.
The belugas, Acadia, Lillooet, Osiris, and Sierra, were previously living in a now-bankrupt aquarium that had considered euthanasia due to financial constraints and the inability to relocate the animals. Canada agreed to allow the rehoming process, and the whales joined a consortium of aquariums in Georgia, San Diego, and Spain.
The mission, unprecedented in scale, required meticulous planning, including inventorying resources and adhering to international animal trade treaties. Upon arrival, the whales were monitored closely, and placed in a secluded habitat for acclimatization. Visitors are asked to maintain silence to help the rescued belugas adjust to their new home.
The Shedd Aquarium, which already had eight belugas, is now welcoming the quartet, exhibiting promising behavior and readiness for their new life. The mission has garnered mixed reactions, with some critics calling for more transparency and an end to captive breeding. Despite the challenges, the Shedd team remains cautiously optimistic about the whales' well-being and potential for future expansion, as Marineland still holds dozens of stranded animals in need of rescue.
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