On March 8th, CBCGDF colleagues found a short video about an adorable spotted seal while working. The spotted seal in the video has been shed, squatting on a pile of yellow pipes for diving, looks small but full of spirit. Because the belly can't be seen, CBCGDF international expert on spotted seals Dr. Sara Platto can't judge the sex of this little spotted seal.

In order to get the information about this spotted seal on the first time, CBCGDF “Spotted Seals Girl” Talina contacted CBCGDF relevant volunteers and obtained the contact way of the video publisher “Righteous Brother” (Yi Ge) through them.

According to Yi Ge, he is an ordinary fisherman in Bayu Bay, Yingkou City, Liaoning Province. In the morning, when fishing in the sea nearby the Bayu Bay in Bohai Bay, he found a small spotted seal on a net (no idea it belongs to whom). He guessed that the spotted seal supposed to be plunging into the net while chasing fish.

According to visual estimates, this small spotted seal weighs about 60 Jin, and its spirit is quite good. It even exhales to Yi Ge to intimidate the “outsider”, added by Yi Ge. Talina consulted to him: is it possible to catch spotted seals often times in this spot? Can spotted seals be seen when you guys go fishing in the sea?

“This is the first time I have ‘fished’ a real spotted seal, which was easier to see 30 years ago. I saw them three or four years ago. It is not easy to see in these tow years. Sometimes I see a few spotted seals are enjoy sunbathing on the reef.” Yi Ge’s reply is like this.

When fisherman accidentally “fished” spotted seals, what should they do in the first place? In order to give professional advice to fishermen, Talina consulted CBCGDF international expert Dr. Sara Platto in the field of spotted seals research and rescue. Sara suggested that when spotted seals are accidentally captured by fishermen, should observe the spotted seals’ physical condition in the first place: if there are no obvious wounds, suppose to observe them for 24 hours or 48 hours to see if they will leave by themselves; if they are injured accidentally, should send them to rescue centers as soon as possible for testing and rescuing. But because Dalian currently does not have a professional spotted seals rescue center, this will be a major challenge for spotted seals, Sara added.

In order to sincerely express CBCGDF’s gratitude to Yi Ge for releasing the spotted seal, CBCGDF will awarded him a certificate of honor and invited him to be a volunteer at the CBCGDF China Conservation Area for Spotted Seals at Yingkou. Yi Ge is very delighted about it.

(Photo credit: Yi Ge)

Original Chinese article:

https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/INqah6Jh0tPKqS2TBW3mRw

By / Niu Jingmei