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Mystic Aquarium pays $12,200 fine connected to beluga whale death

 

From Carrie Czerwinski, TheDay,com, September 21, 2024

Under terms of a settlement with the federal Department of Agriculture, Mystic Aquarium has agreed to pay $12,200 to resolve its alleged violations of the Animal Welfare Act.

The Aug. 13 agreement stems from a USDA inspection of the facility and record review conducted following the August 2021 death of a 5-year-old male beluga whale.

Havok was one of five belugas transferred from Marineland Canada to the aquarium in 2021.

In a statement Friday, the aquarium said it disagreed with the USDA’s conclusions, but chose to settle the issue to avoid costly and time-consuming litigation and focus on “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.”

“Our focus remains on providing world-class care to the animals we serve, and this experience only strengthens our commitment to furthering that mission. As the case has now been resolved, we have no further comment on the settlement or the regulatory issues it addressed,” the aquarium said.

By agreeing to the settlement, the aquarium neither admits nor denies the allegations.

The agreement alleges aquarium staff failed to take adequate precautions to prevent Havok from injuring himself, and cites an instance in June 2021.

Havok, who recently had been treated for eye problems, was in a pool when a visitor dropped an object into the water. Employees then closed the gate to the holding pool while they attempted to retrieve the object with a net. Havok was startled by the net and swam toward an adjacent holding pool after the gate was shut. Although there were dark hatch markings on the clear acrylic gate, Havok swam into the gate sustaining injuries and reopening an existing wound.

“The handling of the whales during the response to the foreign object falling into the pool was not done as carefully as possible to ensure the safety of all the animals, including Havok who had known vision impairment, a history of swimming into habitat walls, and a disposition for being “spooked,” per his behavioral records and previous facility’s medical records,” the agreement states.

Failed to provide care

The agreement further alleges the aquarium failed “to provide adequate veterinary care by not using appropriate methods to prevent, control, diagnose and treat diseases during Havok’s last eight hours.”

It notes numerous instances of Havok rolling and shaking his pectoral fins along with three instances of "gaspy" breaths and seven instances of water seen coming out of his blowhole in the eight hours before his death. It also notes 10 instances of "active bleeding" from Havok's rostrum, or beak, recorded during the two hours prior to his death.

Lastly, the agreement notes water quality issues in two pools holding two other belugas transferred from Marineland, Jetta and Havana.

High concentrations of coliform bacteria were recorded in both pools between November 2021 and December 2021, and an entry in Havana’s medical record noted that coliform changes may have contributed to the eye problems the whale was experiencing and directed staff to be prepared to address even small changes in coliform levels.

Havana died in February 2022, and a third transferred whale, Kharabali, died in December of last year.

Criticism of settlement

“The failure of Mystic staff to contact a veterinarian during a period during which the Beluga was obviously in distress likely contributed to Havoc’s death,” Ohio-based animal welfare group Stop Animal Exploitation Now said in a news release Wednesday.

SAEN filed a complaint with the USDA in June 2022 alleging the aquarium committed “serious violations” of the Animal Welfare Act in connection with the death of Havana, and called for a $10,000 per day fine per infraction for each violation dating back to September 2021.

The aquarium pushed back, saying that the deaths were not preventable.

“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,” the aquarium’s statement said.

Marineland, a zoo and amusement park in Niagara Falls, Canada, has come under intense scrutiny and criticism by animal welfare organizations and government agencies for the condition of its animals, including the poor health and inadequate habitats of the approximately 37 beluga whales currently in its care.

The current population of beluga whales at the Canadian aquarium is down from a high of 54, with 14 dying in just the two-year period between 2019 and 2021.

Michael A. Budkie, SAEN executive director, said in the release that the aquarium should have faced larger penalties.

“These violations contributed to the death of one animal and endangered two others, potentially endangering their health,” he said.

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