The Cornish Seal Sanctuary releases rescued seal pups down on Perranuthnoe beach, Cornwall. Iris Rainbow reports.
At high tide on the 17th of April 2024, a small crowd of people watched in awe as three rehabilitated seal pups were released via the slipway on Perranuthnoe beach. I took the opportunity to talk to a member of staff and delve deeper into the journey these individual seals had taken to finally be fit and healthy enough for the release.
This year’s strong currents brought in some seal pups from further afield, one of which was Ray, an Irish seal pup and one of the three released on this day.
Ray’s plight highlights the tireless work that goes into getting these individuals back to their home environment. Though I was informed the success rate of rehabilitating and releasing these individuals is high, Ray needed a second chance, as he was previously rehabilitated at the Irish Seal Sanctuary.
Not only had he travelled roughly 100 nautical miles, but, according to statistics by Greenpeace UK, he’d travelled across one of the most radioactively contaminated seas with around 8million litres of nuclear waste discharged into it every day. It sure was a miracle that Ray survived this journey to the Cornish coastline in the state he was, dragged by the storms and strong currents.
When Ray arrived 6 months ago, he had stomach worms and was extremely malnourished. However, the Cornish Seal Sanctuary had success in rehabilitating him back to full health.
I asked a senior member of staff how many seals they save and release per year. He informed me, that on average, “the Cornish Seal Sanctuary saves and releases 50 – 70 seals a year, however, with pollution affecting marine life, that number is rising having recently reached highs of 86 seals in a single season.”
As essential members of their ecosystem, acting as both predator and prey, protecting this species is compulsory for the conservation of our coastline enjoyed by millions of people every year.
The team told me that releasing the seal pups after working with them for so long “is bittersweet, but the strongest emotion is a sense of relief”.
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