Seals Returned To Wild
Published: March 21, 2007
Five seals rescued by the RSPCA and successfully nurtured back to health have been released back into the wild.
The seals, which are all around six-months-old, were taken back to the Gower in Wales, near to the areas in which they were originally found, to be released back into their native habitat.
Once released onto the beach, the seals made steady progress towards the water, before finally making their way out to sea to join the colony of grey seals living in the area.
“These young seals were extremely lucky,” said RSPCA Inspector Rohan Barker, who was involved in seeing the seals returned safely to the wild. “They would most certainly have died if we hadn’t rescued them and been able to provide the specialist care they needed.”
“Today’s been a success, we see it as an enjoyable part of the job when we get the return the seals back to where they belong,” added Inspector Barker.
One of the grey seals being released stands out from the crowd as it has a black coat. This is a rare colouring known as melanism - the RSPCA East Winch Wildlife Centre has only cared for six seal pups with black coats since it opened in 1992.
The seals were found along the coastline of the Gower in Wales during September last year, as newborns. They were injured and underweight, and their mothers were nowhere to be seen. Without specialist care they would have been unable to survive the winter.
The animals were collected by the RSPCA and taken to the Llys Nini Animal Centre in Swansea for emergency care, before being taken to the RSPCA East Winch Wildlife Centre, near King’s Lynn, Norfolk, for long-term specialist treatment.
“The seals were rehydrated, hand fed and also given antibiotics in the early weeks to get them back up to strength,” said Alison Charles, manager of the RSPCA East Winch Wildlife Centre.
“Once they were self-feeding, they were allowed to swim in larger pools at the wildlife centre in Norfolk to increase their fitness and help prepare them for the wild.”
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