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Mystic Aquarium fined over $12,000 related to death of beluga whale in 2021, officials say

 

From Jessica Ravo, DarienTimes.com, September 18, 2024

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has fined Mystic Aquarium $12,200 for allegations related to the welfare of its animals, according to documents.

In an Aug. 13 settlement agreement, officials allege the aquarium failed to notify veterinarians of concerning health behaviors exhibited by a sick beluga whale, as well as having unsafe bacteria levels in the animal's pools in 2021.

During inspections, the settlement said officials determined that two pools housing the facility's whales had unsafe bacteria levels.

"There were multiple instances of consecutive days in December 2021 when the coliform bacteria count of water samples of the pools far exceeded 1,000 MPN," the settlement said.

The New York Department of Health said coliform bacteria counts "give a general indication of the sanitary condition of a water supply."

The settlement said Mystic Aquarium was "neither admitting nor denying the alleged violations."

Meagan Seacor, vice president of external relations for the aquarium, said, "The recent settlement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture reflects our desire to move forward and focus on our mission. While we respectfully disagree with the USDA, we've been dealing with this matter since 2021, and settling this allows us to avoid prolonged and costly litigation that would divert attention from our primary goals which is to care for the animals that call Mystic Aquarium home, and to inspire people to care for marine life and the ocean planet at large."

"Mystic Aquarium has always been and will continue to be dedicated to the highest standards of animal care," she said.

According to the settlement, one of the whales housed in the pools with the high levels of coliform reportedly suffered from several conditions related to the water quality. It went on to say that high levels of coliform can "cause irritation to eyes, skin, and the respiratory system."

Officials also said the aquarium improperly handled a situation in which they had to close off the pool to Havok, a 5-year-old beluga with eyesight problems, and other whales. They said the aquarium's handling of the situation caused Havok to get injured.

A report released in 2022 detailed Havok suffered from snout and other types of lacerations after swimming into a gate that closed him off from the main pool. The report went on to say Havok had a preexisting ocular condition that compromised his vision.

The settlement went on to describe aquarium employees' disregard to notifying their veterinarians of "multiple observations of abnormal behavior" eight hours before Havok's death on Aug. 6, 2021. Havok reportedly was exhibiting "logging" and "rolling" behaviors along with rostrum bleeding and making "gaspy"respirations.

"The facility failed to provide adequate veterinary care by not using appropriate methods to prevent, control, diagnose and treat diseases during Havok’s last eight hours," the settlement said.

Just months before Havok's death, Havok and several other belugas were transported to Mystic Aquarium from a facility in Canada. Animal advocates filed a lawsuit against the move, citing the whales would face "distress," but a judge ruled against the group in March 2021.

Seacor said “it’s important to note that this case involved animals previously rescued from Marineland and that their unfortunate deaths were the result of underlying, indetectable diseases, and incurable genetic conditions.”

“This is a matter we have addressed in detail previously, and no fault was found on Mystic Aquarium’s part. Our focus remains on providing world-class care to the animals we serve, and this experience only strengthens our commitment to furthering that mission,” Seacor said.

“As the case has now been resolved, we have no further comment on the settlement or the regulatory issues it addressed,” she said.

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