Due to the storm in the Netherlands in recent days, a large number of newborn gray seal pups have washed up on the beaches of the Wadden Islands. The Ecomare rescue center in De Koog already received seven reports of small seals washing up this morning. Reports also poured in on Sunday. The Dutch seal center Pieterburen has already taken in newborn seals from Terschelling. Puppies also wash up in Zeeland.
The gray seal birth season has just started, according to Ecomare. The animals stay on sandbanks, but due to the stormy weather, some pups are washed off the sandbanks. Sometimes they come ashore with their mother, but lonely pups are also found. Ecomare always recommends keeping a good distance and keeping dogs on a leash on the beach. Experts from a seal center come to see what is going on.
Gray seal pups cannot swim yet and spend the first three weeks in a very quiet, dry place on a beach. The mother only comes ashore to nurse the pup for a long time. Then the small animal has to hunt on its own.
“We keep an eye on every puppy that washes up for at least 24 hours. It is very possible that the mother will show up and take care of her little one herself. To tell the puppies apart, we mark them with a paint dot. If a puppy is really left alone, it will be taken care of,” said an Ecomare spokesperson. “And it is not without reason that we say that people should keep their distance: gray seals can be quite aggressive when they feel threatened. We have already had reports of people saying they had been attacked by a seal.”
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