Seals Released After Spaying Procedure in the Ocean for the First Time
In a successful and well-executed action, seven young seals were released into the wild from the seal stations in Norddeich and Friedrichskoog. The seals, named Hubi, Steve, Scotty, Ariel, Heddies, Hugo, and Vicky, were transported to the East Frisian island of Juist in transport boxes by boat.
Peter Lienau, director of the Norddeich seal station, expressed his satisfaction with the release, stating that it was a successful event. The seals were only taken out of the breeding tanks shortly before release, indicating they were well-prepared for their return to the wild.
The young seals were released onto the beach at the eastern tip of Juist, and they were soon swimming freely in the North Sea. The release comes as a result of the decrease in abandoned seals this year. Animal caretakers attribute this decrease to fewer disturbances by humans during the main breeding phase from June onwards.
The seals' release comes at a time when the peak tourist season on the coast may have a negative impact on the seals' ability to breed and raise their young. The breeding phase usually falls during the peak tourist season, which may contribute to disturbances for the seals.
Seals are protected in the National Park Wadden Sea, and the seal stations in Norddeich and Friedrichskoog are the only authorized intake facilities for seal pups in Germany. Currently, there are 185 young seals in the Friedrichskoog station, and 121 have been taken in at Norddeich so far.
It is worth noting that this year, the young seals at the Norddeich seal station reached their release weight of 25 kilograms on average after 56 days. The decrease in disturbances during the breeding phase may be due to fewer tourists on the coast during the main breeding season.
While the exact reasons for the decrease in hand-reared young seals taken in at the Norddeich seal station remain unspecified, fluctuations in the number of hand-reared young seals at such stations can result from factors like changes in seal pup mortality in the wild, variations in environmental conditions, food availability, disease outbreaks, or differences in rescue and rehabilitation efforts by the station.
Despite the uncertainties, the successful release of these seven seals onto Juist Island marks a significant step towards the conservation of these marine mammals in Germany.
As the young seals were released to the wild, Peter Lienau, the director of the Norddeich seal station, expressed enthusiasm, envisioning a change in their lifestyle from home-and-garden to outdoor-living. Alongside their newfound freedom, radio broadcasts about their journey and updates on the conservation of marine life echoed across the East Frisian islands, weaving the seals' story into the local community's landscape and lifestyle.
