On September 4, a netizen posted a video on a social platform saying that the beluga whale at the Beijing Aquarium made a shrill scream for a long time. He felt that the beluga whale was in pain and was worried that the beluga whale had health problems. On September 5, a staff me

html On September 4, a netizen posted a video on a social platform saying that the beluga whale in the Beijing Aquarium screamed for a long time. He felt that the beluga whale was in pain and worried that the beluga whale had health problems.

html On September 5, a staff member of the Beijing Aquarium told Red Star News that the aquarium had received relevant complaints and suggestions, and had reported them to relevant departments and communicated them to the next level.

▲Netizens posted videos expressing concerns about the health of beluga whales

According to the Beijing News, the keeper of the Beijing Aquarium told reporters that the beluga whales in the museum generally live a happy life, and whistles are only made when they are happy. Only then was it issued. The keeper also denied the claim that the beluga had surface injuries.

Cetacean knowledge popularization blogger Ms. Jing, assistant to the Cetacean Conservation Alliance, told Red Star News that in recent years, tourists and volunteers often reported to her that beluga whales in the Beijing Aquarium screamed and hit the pool wall with their bodies. etc. behavior. She believes these are "stereotypic behaviors" common among animals in captivity.

Ms. Jing explained that the beluga whale’s “scream” is not through vibration of the vocal cords, but by controlling the frontal air sac to squeeze out a whistle. In the wild, beluga whales communicate with each other through body language and a degree of echolocation. Although beluga whales in the wild are physically capable of screaming, they don't need to do it so frequently.

Ms. Jing said that beluga whales are social animals with developed minds. The living space and daily activities of beluga whales in solitary confinement are far less abundant than in the wild. The small pool cannot meet their physical and psychological needs, causing them to have to "do something" to relieve their loneliness, boredom and suppressed pain. Some captive beluga whales will "scream" to perform under the guidance of their trainers. They find that this action can attract the trainer's attention and get food rewards, etc., and may gradually form stereotyped behaviors.

Wang Yamin, a professor at the Ocean College of Shandong University and deputy secretary-general of the Fisheries Branch of the China Agricultural Ecological Environmental Protection Association, told Red Star News that beluga whales’ calls are not only diverse, but also have social functions, and they are also good at imitating various sounds. In the wild, beluga whales make more vocal calls to inform each other. But it should be noted that cetacean language cannot be understood using human thinking.

Wang Yamin said that beluga is a social animal and it is best to live in a family. Interaction with humans cannot meet its social needs. It is impossible to determine whether this "screaming" is a stereotyped behavior based only on the clips in the online video. It needs to be comprehensively judged based on factors such as whether its living environment is abnormal and whether there are other beluga whales around. For example, beluga whales are good at imitating Or maybe it's imitating a child's cry. But if it lives alone in the pool for a long time, it is undoubtedly lonely, lonely, and longs for the company of its own kind.

According to the Beijing News, in April 2010, the Beijing Aquarium spent a huge sum of money to introduce two beluga whales, a male and a female, from Russia. At that time, they were 3 to 5 years old.

According to the Beijing Aquarium website, the full name of the Beijing Aquarium is Beijing Xinwoda Marine Technology Co., Ltd., which is located on the north bank of the Changhe River in the Beijing Zoo.

reporters learned from Beijing Zoo staff that Beijing Aquarium and Beijing Zoo are operated separately and do not belong to the same unit. Tianyancha shows that Beijing Xinwoda Marine Technology Co., Ltd. was established in 2013 and is a member of Maoming Port Group.

Red Star News reporter Wang Yucheng

Partially comprehensive Beijing News

(Source: Red Star News)

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