Shimane: Orphaned Beluga Whale Successfully Raised by Human Staff at Aquarium

The Yomiuri Shimbun

12:00 JST, April 11, 2026

HAMADA, Shimane — An aquarium in Hamada, Shimane Prefecture, has successfully raised a beluga whale orphaned shortly after birth. This is the second confirmed case of successful breeding of the animal in Japan, following a case at Kamogawa Sea World in Chiba Prefecture.

Lilya, a female beluga whale, was born on July 1, 2024, at Shimane Aquarium Aquas, a Shimane prefectural aquarium. Her mother Alya was a popular beluga whale known for her “bubble ring” performance — creating rings in the water with bubbles blown from her mouth.

Alya stopped eating immediately after giving birth to Lilya and died 10 days later. Aquarium staff then began feeding and taking care of Lilya in place of her mother.

Artificial rearing of such an animal is seen as a success if carers are able to wean the calf. Drawing on the efforts at Kamogawa Sea World, the staff at the Shimane aquarium mixed formula with milk for dogs or marine mammals, along with minced herring and other foods, and slowly fed Lilya over time.

For about one month after birth, veterinarians and keepers took turns observing her 24 hours a day. Every three hours, they would hold her in their arms and insert a tube into her stomach to feed her the formula.

This coincided with the birth of another beluga whale at the aquarium, meaning about 40 staff members per day cared for the two calves during peak times.

Lilya was weaned in February 2025 and had grown to 222 centimeters in length and 180 kilograms in weight as of Feb. 24.

She has already mastered the bubble ring technique and can be seen in the park’s pool. The aquarium aims to have her appear in shows by the end of the year at the earliest.