Meet the New England team working to rescue the seals
BLOCK ISLAND, R.I. — The Mystic Aquarium Animal Rescue Team has never been busier.
Looking through binoculars, program manager Sarah Callan scanned the shoreline for a growing problem on Block Island, Rhode Island — entangled seals.
When fishing gear, garbage or a balloon gets wrapped around a gray seal's neck, it tightens as the marine mammal — which can exceed 800 pounds — grows and can lead to significant injury or death.
Twenty entangled gray seals have been reported to the Connecticut-based non-profit far this year; that is more than what's typically documented by Mystic annually.
Callan called the spike 'alarming.'
NBC News was given rare access to follow Mystic, working in partnership with the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society and Block Island Maritime Institute, as they set out to disentangle seals born within the last several months.
Callan and her colleagues flanked a group of seal pups sunbathing on the water's edge. They army-crawled in an attempt not to spook the herd, before sprinting in with bright red boards to separate the entangled pup and scoop him up with a net in a feat of speed and impeccable timing.
Once the pup was contained, the team drew blood, attached a tracker for research and cut him free of the fishing net constricting his neck.
'We're going to be able to just release the seal today and avoid having to bring it into our clinic for rehab,' Callan said, as the team worked. 'The quicker we can get out here to disentangle them, the better.'
This is the same team that took in a wayward seal stranded in downtown New Haven, Connecticut, in February. The seal pup won over the internet with his big eyes and sweet cry, and the public even voted on his name, 'Chappy.'
Sadly, he didn't make it, succumbing to gastrointestinal issues that were too severe to treat. In a statement posted online, Mystic also said they found pieces of plastic in his stomach, 'highlighting the threat that marine debris, especially plastics, poses to marine animals.'
Some estimates suggest plastic pollution kills more than 100,000 marine mammals every year.
'The amount of animals that are interacting with human-made products and debris within the first couple months of their life is a bit alarming,' Callan said, 'and it directly relates to the state of the ocean. … We feel that it's our job to help share that message and educate people on the threats they face.'
It's a mounting fight that Mystic isn't giving up on.
The team cheered, as the seal they just cut free from netting galumphed (the undulating motion seals use to move on land) back into the ocean.
'You get to give an animal a second chance at life that they normally wouldn't have without our intervention,' Callan said. 'It's such a special moment to see.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Chilling mayday call from pilot of doomed plane before it plunges into ocean
The Coast Guard confirmed on Sunday that all six people on board the doomed aircraft that crashed into the ocean near San Diego after taking off from San Diego International Airport have died In yet another American aviation tragedy, a small plane carrying six people nosedived into the ocean shortly after takeoff on Sunday with authorities confirming that the crash claimed the lives of everyone on board. The doomed twin-engine Cessna 414 crashed at around 12.30pm on Sunday in San Diego, just three miles west of Point Loma. The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) has confirmed the deaths of all six passengers, but their identities are pending official release. Harrowing audio from air traffic control, shared by CBS 8, captured the pilot's desperate plea for higher altitude immediately after leaving San Diego International Airport. The aircraft barely managed to reach 1000ft during its doomed ascent, with the pilot uttering "mayday" over the radio before falling silent. Coast Guard crews swiftly located a debris field off the coast near San Diego's Point Loma area on Sunday. According to The Associated Press reports, the ocean at the crash site has a depth of around 200ft. Following the devastating incident, the Coast Guard launched a major search operation, involving a Jayhawk helicopter, a fixed-wing aircraft, a cutter, and two smaller boats, continuing their search until dusk. "We've located a debris field, but I don't have details on its size yet," Coast Guard Petty Officer Ryan Graves told NBC 7 shortly before 3.30pm on Sunday. A surfer told NBC 7 about the chilling moment he saw the aircraft plummet: "The next time he came out of the clouds, he went straight into the water. But after I saw this splash, about six seconds later, it was dead silent. I knew that they went in the water, nose first, at a high speed," Tyson Wislofsky revealed. After confirming that the doomed plane belongs to vitamin producers Optimal Health Systems, there's been an update from the company that the FAA records might be behind the times. The Arizona-based firm, which sold the plane just this year, said it passed to private hands. Founder Doug Grant joined in mourning, stating: "We personally know several of the passengers onboard, and our sincerest condolences are offered to those affected by the tragedy, all of whom are incredible members of our small community."
NBC News
3 days ago
- NBC News
A mournful Eid al-Adha in Gaza
Under the damaged dome of al-Albani Mosque in Khan Younis, families stood on broken stone and dust, raising their voices in takbir, the declaration of god's greatness, to mark the first morning of Eid al-Adha on Friday. In Gaza, the holiest of the two major Muslim holidays is traditionally a time for communal worship, the sacrifice of lambs, and shared meals. Families gather around piles of bread baked on the saj and morsels of liver fresh from the slaughter. But this year in Khan Younis, there was no feast. No lambs to sacrifice. No smell of meat cooking, no joyful reunions. The celebration, stripped of its customs, pressed on in grief. 'We don't eat meat, we don't eat liver, we are not happy like other times waiting for the Eid with joy,' Eftarag Abou Sabaa told NBC News' team in Khan Younis. Rather than the ritual sacrifice of a lamb, Abou Sabaa said, 'We sacrifice the blood of martyrs. We sacrifice our sons, our daughters, and our mothers; we sacrifice ourselves in a way that sets us apart from other people.' That morning, crowds moved quietly to the Khan Younis cemetery to visit loved ones lost to the war, and greeted each other by the tombstones of children, parents, and friends. Only the buzz of Israeli drones overhead filled the solemn silence. 'This is not an Eid of joy; it is an Eid of mourning and death,' Ahmed Darwish, displaced from Rafah to west Khan Younis, told NBC News as he stood beside the graves. 'Our children and women are in pieces. Instead of sacrificing animals, we collected body parts this morning.' On Eid, Israeli strikes continued as families wept by the bodies of their loved ones, killed before celebrations could begin. Reda Abdel Rahim Eljara told an NBC News team that Israeli air strikes had already killed her husband and one of her sons. On the first day of Eid al-Adha, she lost two more sons and her daughter-in-law. "Three months ago, on Eid al-Fitr, my son Qais got married," she told NBC News. "Today, on the main Eid, he is martyred with his wife." Umm Ahmad Al-Qatati said her son, Omar, 11, was shot as he left his tent to shower and get ready for a visit to see his father. 'He was so excited for Eid morning, but they sent him to the morgue instead,' she said. "Instead of celebrating Eid, he went to be with his Lord." Those for whom death had not come, trudged forward. At the ruins of al-Albani Mosque, Thaer al-Salmi, 14, continued to pray. "We try to find some joy by praying and wearing a few clothes to feel the Eid spirit," he said. 'I hope this war ends, and that next Eid will be like it was two years ago — a real celebration without war.'
Daily Record
4 days ago
- Daily Record
Items recovered from 1859 tragic Ayrshire shipwreck to go on display at museum
The SS Eagle is seen as an unprecedented example of an almost intact cargo of 19th century Glaswegian ceramics. A collection of rare 19th century ceramics recovered from the wreck of the 1857 iron steamship SS Eagle off Lamlash Bay, Arran, last year, will go on display for the first time in the Scottish Maritime Museum's Summer exhibition which opens tomorrow. The 'Beneath the Waves' exhibition, which goes on show in the museum's Linthouse building on Irvine Harbourside, brings together the historic ceramic collection, award-winning underwater photography and an artist's detailed marine sketches to celebrate the extraordinary world beneath the ocean's surface. The SS Eagle launched from the Dumbarton yard of Alexander Denny in July 1857. The 324 tonne steamer was acquired by the McConnel and Laird Line of Glasgow in June 1859 for service as a passenger and cargo vessel. Just five months later, on November 28, 1859, SS Eagle sank after colliding with a sailing boat, the Pladda, whilst en route from Glasgow to Londonderry with a general cargo, two hundred sheep and fifty four passengers. Eleven lives were lost. The SS Eagle ceramics, which were discovered by Oban-based diver and maritime explorer Graeme Bruce and team in July 2024, were made by Glasgow-based Bell's Pottery. Bell's Pottery was established by brothers John and Matthew Perston Bell in late 1840 or 1841. The site at the corner of Stafford Street and Pulteney Street was close to the Forth & Clyde Canal which was used to transport goods and raw materials. According to the Scottish Pottery Society, Bell's Pottery export wares have been found as far afield as South America, the Far East, Australia and Canada. The last piece of Bell's Pottery was probably made around 1912. In the 19th century, Glasgow was a major centre for the production of ceramics and rivalled the Staffordshire potteries. Bell's Pottery itself is recognised as arguably the most internationally significant producer of ceramic wares in Scotland at the time. The lack of surviving pottery from Glasgow's industrial ceramics period, which spanned three centuries from 1748 to the mid 1980's, makes the SS Eagle's ceramic tableware nationally significant. The SS Eagle collection features ceramics destined for trade and exhibition in Londonderry, Northern Island, and artefacts from the ship's galley. Exhibits include seven plates and a bowl, a teapot lid and two bottles which still hold 'sparkling water' in addition to a decanter and bell. Complementing the SS Eagle ceramics, 'Beneath the Waves' also features cups and plates from the Scottish Maritime Museum's own national maritime heritage collection as well as four vessels dating back to the Roman Empire on loan from North Ayrshire Heritage Centre. Eva Bukowska, Exhibitions and Events Officer at the Scottish Maritime Museum, said: "We are really excited to host the first showing of these fascinating ceramics recovered from SS Eagle. The vessel also has a significance for the Museum as it was built by Alexander Denny, who was the brother of William Denny, whose test tank is now home to our second collection in Dumbarton." Graeme Bruce added: "Diving has been my great passion for 35 years. For me, a shipwreck is a 'time capsule' hidden from view over time by the sea. The privilege of being able to explore and connect with the past is beyond description. Enabling the artefacts from shipwrecks like this Bell's Pottery collection to then have a new life on show for everyone to learn from and appreciate is so important. Connecting people with a heritage like this means everything to me and those I dive with." 'Beneath the Waves' exhibition has been curated in collaboration with renowned underwater photographer, marine conservationist and writer Lawson Wood; diver, maritime explorer and retired engineer Graeme Bruce; and Ayrshire underwater artist and writer Christina Riley. In the exhibition, Lawson Wood, who enjoyed his first scuba dive aged 11 years, draws on 60 years of underwater photography. His images reveal the captivating world of marine life and range from colourful tropical fish and seals to corals and anemones. Christina Riley's work focuses on the small details of complex and beautiful marine ecosystems. The exhibition features a selection of photographs and pencil drawings created during her time as a snorkelling-artist-in-residence at the Argyll Hope Spot. Part of the global Mission Blue initiative led by the renowned oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle, the Hope Spots project highlights areas critical to the health of the ocean. Other Hope Spots include the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. Visitors can also learn more about freediving and how this ancient practice has advanced our understanding of marine archaeology and conservation. 'Beneath the Waves' runs from Saturday, June 7 to Saturday, September 13. Admission to 'Beneath the Waves' is included in Museum admission. The museum is open daily from 10am until 5pm. Up to three children go FREE with each Adult/Concession ticket.
