Two Beluga Whales Rescued from War-Torn Ukraine
This week a pair of beluga whales were rescued from an aquarium, the NEMO Dolphinarium, in war-ravaged Kharkiv, Ukraine. Marine mammal specialists from Oceanogràfic de Valencia, Georgia Aquarium, and SeaWorld pulled off the rescue that took weeks to plan.
The belugas, a 14-year-old female named Miranda and 15-year-old male named Plombir and, arrived in Valencia, Spain “in delicate health” following their grueling journey across the war zone.
Their evacuation began with a treacherous 12-hour drive from Kharkiv to Odessa, where the international team quickly conducted health checks on the evacuees. From there they sped to the Moldova border and on to Chisinau, where a six-seater chartered plane was waiting to fly Miranda and Plombir onward to Valencia.
“The belugas’ health and safety was our top priority, and these were challenging conditions, including rough roads, rising temperatures and the inherent risks of being in an active war zone,” Keith Yip, an animal-care specialist at SeaWorld said in a press release. “The Ukrainian caregivers were very brave, and the whole team involved did everything possible to provide the belugas comfort and safety during the evacuation to Valencia.”
The rescue may well have saved the belugas’ lives, as their former home, the NEMO Dolphinarium, has been facing increasing threat from artillery fire, with bombs dropping within a few hundred meters of the aquarium in recent weeks. Since the war began in 2022, the dolphinarium has evacuated seals, sea lions, and dolphins, but moving belugas was a more complex logistical operation due to their size and particular needs.
Mirana and Plombir now live in Oceanogràfic Valencia, not only the largest aquarium in Europe but the only one on the continent that accommodates belugas. A team of medical, nutritional, and behavioral experts at Oceanogràfic are on hand to assist in the belugas’ recovery and transition to their new digs.
Photo credit: Oceanogràfic de Valencia
