Mystic Aquarium Makes Its First 2009 Seal Release

By Becky Giantonio 

Mystic, CT - Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration’s first seal release of the busy winter season took place today at Blue Shutters Beach in Charlestown, R.I.

The yearling female harp seal was originally rescued on February 6, 2009, by the Department of Marine Resources in Maine and was transferred to Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration’s Seal Rescue Clinic that same day. The admittance exam revealed moderate dehydration and a mildly elevated white blood cell count.

While in the Seal Rescue Clinic, she was given antibiotics and treated for dehydration. She has since been eating well, and her blood work results yesterday were unremarkable.

The yearling male harp seal originally scheduled for the first release of the season last Wednesday, February 25, continues to gain weight in the Seal Rescue Clinic to increase its chances of survival in the wild.

Photo captions: Janelle Schuh, stranding coordinator at Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration, watches the seal makes its journey down the beach and into the water.

About Sea Research Foundation, Inc.
Mystic Aquarium, Institute for Exploration and Immersion Presents are divisions of Sea Research Foundation, Inc., a private, non-profit, charitable organization incorporated in the State of Connecticut. The mission of Sea Research is to inspire people to care for and protect our ocean planet through education, research and exploration.

About Sea Research Foundation’s Stranding Department
Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration has been rescuing stranded marine mammals for more than 30 years, and is a founding member of the Northeast Regional Stranding Network. The network consists of independent organizations dedicated to caring for sick and injured animals and learning more about the reasons they come ashore. Stranding Department staff care for sea turtles and marine mammals, from the smallest seals to whales. In all, the aquarium has responded to more than 800 stranding calls from the public, treating more than 300 marine mammals and releasing more than 160 that would have died had they been left on the shore.