A baby seal was found wandering the streets of Connecticut town roughly 20 miles away from the ocean, baffling the entire community.
The seal, believed to be about five or six weeks old, was discovered just outside on oyster bar in the middle of Chapel Street near East Street in New Haven.
New Haven police got the call on Sunday, and one officer described just how strange it was to see the sea creature just wandering around on land.
Police blocked off the area where the seal was found until the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) and representatives from Mystic Aquarium arrived to deal with the unusual situation.
‘I’m sure they thought it was a joke, but it was not,’ New Haven Police Officer Christian Bruckhart told WTNH. ‘It was a seal in the street.’
‘We don’t know why it was here,’ Bruckhart added. ‘I assumed it was for the clam pizza.’
The police department also posted a hilarious pictured of the seal sitting on the pavement right next to a squad car, writing: ‘Meet the newest addition to the department!’
Pictured: The baby seal was seen in the middle of a New Haven street right next to a police car
The seal, believed to be about five or six weeks old, was discovered in the middle of Chapel Street near East Street in New Haven
The coastal city is right on the Long Island Sound, but that body of water – which has been becoming home to more seals in last ten years – isn’t technically considered the ocean.
Mystic Aquarium animal rescue technician Francesca Battaglia told the local outlet that the aquarium’s rescue team had already tried to relocate the animal.
They spotted it Branford last week and on Saturday, he was seen next to Shell & Bones Oyster Bar and Grill on South Water Street in New Haven, which is particularly fitting seeing as oysters are a crucial part of a seal’s diet.
‘It definitely was concerning for us when we say he was amidst all that hustle and bustle of the city,’ Battaglia said.
‘We were like, he’s still bright and alert and looking good,’ she added. ‘Maybe we can just relocate him to a safe beach, and so our team did do that. But then, unfortunately, the next day, he showed back up in the middle of the city there.’
The aquarium, roughly 55 miles from New Haven, will be taking custody of the baby seal and revealed that the animal was severely underweight at just 28 pounds.
Newborns typically weigh about 35 pounds and nurse on a high-fat milk diet for about three weeks, according to the aquarium.
Technicians said he was found in a lethargic and dehydrated state, which is why they’ll work to nurse him back to health.
‘It was a very interesting call. It’s not a typical scenario where we get a seal that is just roaming around busy streets where it’s obviously not safe,’ Battaglia said to FOX 61.
The seal is pictured at Mystic Aquarium, which is about 55 miles from New Haven where it was discovered over the weekend
The seal began fluid therapy as part of its individualized treatment plan. He will be fed with a diluted fish formula that will provide him with nutrition to grow and get healthier.
‘He’s gonna get his individualized treatment plan to make sure he’s working through any illness he may have and we gotta put some weight on him because he’s very underweight, he’s very thin,’ Battaglia said.
The ultimate goal is to reintroduce the seal to the wild, which could take weeks or even months before he is healthy enough, the aquarium said.
The aquarium also told FOX 61 that technicians are closing monitoring the seal’s behavior. They believe the creature could keep coming out of the water because he is too comfortable with humans.
Gray seals are federally protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which makes it illegal to hunt or import them.
