Two beluga whales died at Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, as announced by the institution on Wednesday. The deaths are of Rain, a 20-year-old female rescued and transferred to the aquarium in mid-August, and Beethoven, a 34-year-old male who was already part of the resident group at the facility. The veterinary teams tried to save the animals but were unsuccessful.
These deaths follow another beluga whale, transferred from a Canadian marine park that was closed, dying last week during the international operation to remove the animals from the site. With these two new cases, three beluga whales have now died in one week.
The aquarium stated, in a press release, that it is still impossible to determine whether the deaths are isolated cases or are related to each other. The rescue operation involves dozens of animals that were transferred from the Canadian marine park, and the last group of rescued belugas recently arrived at Shedd Aquarium.
