Both the Seal and Turtle were found trapped in the same fishing net that washed up on the beach earlier on Wednesday.
Kommetjie, South Africa – A seal and a loggerhead turtle were found trapped in fishing nets by residents walking along a beach in Kommetjie.
At 08h51, on Wednesday, 31st July, NSRI Kommetjie duty crew were activated following eye-witness reports of a seal and a Loggerhead turtle trapped in a fishing net washed ashore on the beach at Longbeach, Kommetjie.
Members of the public walking along the beach had come across the two distressed animals, and they raised the alarm.
An NSRI Kommetjie rescue crew responded, and they were joined on the scene by the staff of the Two Oceans Aquarium.
“We found the two animals trapped in one net, and it appears that they may have been drifting at sea for some time in what looks like an old and discarded fishing net and most likely washed ashore during the night in the storm,” the National Sea Rescue Institute’s Ian Kloppe said.
The seal appeared most stressed, and for safety, they used the South African Whale Disentanglement Network poles and cutting equipment and in an operation lasting about half an hour. The net was cut away from the two animals, and they were successfully released and the net recovered for disposal.
The seal immediately returned to the sea appearing to be unharmed and the turtle was transported to Two Oceans Aquarium by their staff who have confirmed that the turtle is receiving good care and rehabilitation but is in good health and will be released back to the ocean soon.
Loggerhead sea turtles are classified as vulnerable by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and are listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, making the release of the animal back into the wild incredibly important.
Check out some of the pics of the rescue below:
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