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Two sea lions from Marineland have made the cross-country journey to their new home at the Vancouver Aquarium.
Holly and Maui, both 18, are getting used to their new space, said the aquarium in a recent news release. They’re staying in a separate pool until they’re ready to meet Señor Cinco — the resident male sea lion.
Holly and Maui were moved to Vancouver as part of Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums’ “co-ordinated effort” to find long-term homes for animals previously located at Marineland, said the release.
The shuttered Niagara Falls, Ont., amusement park is in the process of relocating its animals, including 30 belugas, four dolphins, seals, bears and deer. It’s unclear if more sea lions remain at Marineland now that Holly and Maui have a new home.
Holly’s and Maui’s age make them “mature animals,” said Mackenzie Neale, director of animal care at Vancouver Aquarium.
“Our responsibility is to support their long-term health and quality of life,” she said in a statement.
The team there will support the natural behaviours of the “social species” with daily enrichment and “individualized wellness planning.”
The aquarium rescues more than 150 marine animals a year and more than 80 per cent return to the wild. Those that can’t be returned stay at the aquarium for the rest of their lives.
The defunct amusement park in Niagara Falls, Ont., is working to move its remaining animals to new homes. In the meantime, workers are regularly on site caring for aquatic and land animals.
Marineland did not respond to CBC Hamilton’s questions about whether other animals have been sent to new homes recently and how many remain.
Drone footage captured by CBC News this week shows a number of Marineland beluga whales being fed from their tank and dozens of deer grazing on the property.
Conditional approval to export whales
Twenty whales have died at Marineland since 2019, according to The Canadian Press and based on internal records and official statements.
The park, on a swath of land near the Horseshoe Falls, closed its doors to the public in the summer of 2024.
Since then, Marineland has been trying to export its whales to other aquariums, threatening to euthanize them if it doesn’t get the federal government’s permission.
Caring for 30 beluga whales is expensive, at an estimated $2 million a month, Premier Doug Ford previously said.
Marineland wants to pivot to other attractions without any animals, Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati has told CBC Hamilton.
Last month, Ottawa said it has granted Marineland “conditional approval” to send its belugas and dolphins to the U.S., namely Georgia Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium, Shedd Aquarium and a SeaWorld location.
