Images VIA

Just to get this out of the way right at the top: massive mammals shouldn’t be kept in tiny enclosures. They’re more intelligent than most humans and whether they’re well fed or not, it’s just cruel.

That being said, the following images are pretty amazing, it’s rare to get a glimpse of the elusive beluga. The otherworldly action is taking place on the Pacific coast of Russia at a “scientific centre”.

The people of a small village called Nilmoguba in northern Russia have a special licence which allows them to capture beluga and train them to be unafraid of humans. The poor behemoths are then taken to zoos and aquariums across Russia where they are penned up and gorped at for the rest of their days. Half of the beluga don’t make it to their final destinations alive. I’m not sure which are the lucky ones.

Beluga are quite incredible looking animals. Take a look at these tragic beauties over the following slides: