Calgary Zoo plans an 'Arctic Shores' exhibit, including polar bears and beluga whales

Recently Calgary Zoo unveiled its proposals for its expansion. Marine Connection are particularly concerned to learn that the Arctic Shores exhibit will contain beluga whales and polar bears. Proposed to be the size of a football pitch, with 10 million litres of water to a depth of 10 metres, the Arctic Shores exhibit could never hope to match the niche requirements of these animals.

This US$140 million expansion plan will involve a new Arctic Shores exhibit, an Antarctic exhibit as well as improvements to their elephant enclosure.

Beluga Whales
Beluga whales have adapted over time to the extreme, niche conditions of Arctic and sub-Arctic waters, where it travels hundreds of miles either underneath or following behind the ice.

In the wild, beluga whales live in close knit family pods, they dive up to 400 metres to catch live prey and will use echolocation to explore their environment and determine where they, their prey and small cracks in the ice are. At its deepest the Calgary Zoo aquarium is only planned to be 10 metres deep, there certainly will not be any live fish to stimulate their lives and we can only imagine what small percentage of their usual range is being offered within this tank. The whales' natural skills are rendered useless.

Polar bears
Similarly it has been proved many times, including at Calgary Zoo (their previous polar bear exhibit was shut down in 1999) and to the detriment of each captive polar bear, that captive situations are absolutely unsuitable for polar bears.

Polar bears have a huge range, travelling huge distances across the Arctic, hunting only off ice and are even able to swim for miles, yet the new plans only put aside space the size of a "football pitch" for the whole exhibit - how can this compare to the Arctic which polar bears are free to explore? Again, polar bears demonstrate extreme, adapted behaviour which cannot be accommodated in a zoo and will have serious repercussions for the polar bears included.

Although Calgary Zoo has said it will be responsible about which animals it uses, there is no getting away from the fact that this will perpetuate and encourage more animals to be taken from the wild. I have recently seen footage of several beluga whales being captured for the zoo industry and I can tell you it was obviously distressing for the whales and in no way responsible or 'kind'. In addition, there is no reason to entertain the idea that captive born mammals have any less of the physiological needs than a wild caught animal. They still have the desire to travel hundreds of miles, dive to huge depths, hunt for prey and use their unique abilities' which have been adapted over time to ensure their survival in their appropriate, wild and natural surroundings.

Canada is in the unique position to offer the chance to see both polar bears and beluga whales in the wild. I cannot understand why they would therefore want to put them in enclosures which severely restrict so many of the animals' natural tendencies.

Take Action!
Please write a polite letter, email or fax to the Premier of Alberta and the Mayor of Calgary to the details below.

Although money has been put aside by both the above parties for the development of the Zoo, we would like to urge them to put the money into the improvement of the existing enclosures and lives of the animals at Calgary Zoo.

Premier Klein
Office of the Premier
Room 307, Legislature Building
10800 - 97th Avenue
Edmonton, Alberta
T5K 2B6

Email or Fax: (780) 427-1349

Mayor Bronconnier
Office of the Mayor
The City of Calgary
P.O. Box 2100, Station M
Calgary AB T2P 2M5

Email or Fax: (403) 268-8130