A young seal that found itself in a plastic predicament got help right on time! The plastic, which formed something of a cape as it caught on the seal’s neck, could’ve led to terrible odds for the juvenile had it not been for the fast-acting intervention:
Cape Town, South Africa (07 August 2024) — There’s nothing quite as delightful as exploring South Africa’s coastline and coming across a seal basking in the sun or peering its head from soft waters. But a far less picturesque scene is one where a seal is basking in plastic—a sight that recently dampened spirits in Cape Town as a young seal struggled due to a big plastic bag trapped around its neck.
Seals are very curious creatures who will often inspect what they find in the ocean, which often leads to them getting entangled in plastic or fishing waste. But curiosity is not the problem here—irresponsible disposal of plastic and the plastic pollution problems in our oceans are.
Luckily for the young seal, his plastic predicament was soon resolved thanks to Martine Viljoen, a Marine Wildlife Management Assistant at the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation.
According to the Two Ocean Aquarium Foundation, the plastic bag was almost as big as the juvenile seal and gave off “the illusion of a deadly cape around its neck.”
But Martine was armed with experience and a unique pole with cutting equipment at its end which made for a swift removal and one more seal live saved!
“This is yet another reminder of our impact on marine life—if it weren’t for the efforts of our Marine Wildlife Management Programme, this young seal may likely have drowned from the drag and weight caused by the plastic bag. Please remember to be mindful of your plastic use for the sake of little seals like this one,” the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation shared.
The Marine Wildlife Management Programme and Martine have been responsible for many seal rescues in the marina—acting as a line of immediate help. However, even if you aren’t a marine life expert, you can still be a hero to these animals by making sure you don’t litter, reducing your use of plastic and recycling.
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