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🇰🇷 South Korea /Culture & Society

165 Years Captive: The Enduring Tragedy of Beluga Whales in Aquariums

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Context piece
  • Beluga whales, first systematically captured for entertainment in 1861, face continued exploitation in aquariums despite increased understanding of their complex social lives and needs.
  • Early captures by P.T. Barnum in New York involved brutal transport and short lifespans, with some whales perishing in a museum fire.
  • Despite advancements in knowledge, belugas are still confined to small tanks, with a recent calf dying days after birth in South Korea, highlighting ongoing suffering.

For 165 years, beluga whales have been confined to aquariums, a practice that began with P.T. Barnum's "American Museum" in New York in 1861. Barnum's initial captures from the St. Lawrence River and Labrador involved transporting the whales in water-filled boxes by train, a process that proved fatal for the first two specimens within two days.

Despite these early deaths, Barnum declared his venture a success and continued his "white whale hunt." He created what could be considered the world's first marine aquarium, emphasizing the animals' imminent demise to attract visitors. Between 1861 and 1865, he captured nine wild belugas. Some died during transport, others in the tanks, and some met a horrific end when the museum caught fire, with the whales reportedly burning alive.

Belugas became early targets for captivity due to their adaptability to marine environments, smaller size compared to other whales, and thick blubber layer, which aided in transport. Their white skin, rounded heads, and seemingly smiling mouths also appealed to human aesthetics. Their intelligence and curiosity, demonstrated by their ability to retrieve objects and mimic sounds, likely contributed to their appeal as performers.

These whales, capable of swimming 160 km daily and diving to 1 km, communicate with a wide range of sounds, earning them the nickname "canaries of the Arctic." They exhibit complex social behaviors, playing and raising young. While we now understand much more about them than in Barnum's era, the fundamental problem of confining them for entertainment persists. In early June, a beluga calf died just three days after birth at the Geoje Sea World facility in South Korea. In the wild, it would have had family and companions during its long gestation and nursing period, but its mother was alone in a concrete tank. 165 years after the first captures, the cycle of death continues. Five belugas remain captive in three South Korean aquariums.

The whales were burned alive.

— New York TribuneDescribing the fate of beluga whales in a museum fire.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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