New fins in town: Rescued belugas from Canada arrive in Chicago
CHICAGO - Four beluga whales arrived safely at Chicago's Shedd Aquarium Tuesday morning after being flown in from Canada.
New whale residents at Shedd Aquarium
The backstory:
The belugas, all female, were rescued from the closed Marineland marine park in Niagra Falls as part of the first successful rescue effort to relocate a pod of 30 whales, according to the aquarium.
The four belugas were chosen to move together to Shedd because they had preexisting bonds with each other.
According to aquarium officials, their names are Acadia, 27; Osiris, 26; Sierra, 26 and Lillooet, 21.
"As a highly social species, dynamics between the animals are important in providing comfort during transport and as the animals get settled in their new homes," Shedd Aquarium said.
The whales will explore the Abbott Oceanarium for the time being.
What they're saying:
Shedd Aquarium said that it was asked to rescue and rehome the whales along with several other zoos and aquariums across the nation and the world, including San Diego, San Antonio, and even Valencia, Spain.
"This moment marks the next chapter for these rescued belugas," said Dr. Karisa Tang, lead veterinarian and vice president of animal health at Shedd Aquarium. "Now that they are here, the full attention of our care and veterinary teams is on getting to know these whales and providing whatever supplemental support, care, treatment, nutrition and attention we can provide to help them acclimate to their new environment."
What's next:
The rescued belugas are not currently available for public viewing yet, but the aquarium will continue to share updates. It's unknown when the whales will make their public debut.
The aquarium said it is "committed to offering a safe haven and lifelong care for up to 10 beluga whales as part of the rescue effort."
The Source: The information in this report came from the Shedd Aquarium.