Lost Northern Fur Seal Found on Hawaii Beach

By Kelli Bender Aug 3rd 2012

Someone took a wrong turn. According to the Associated Press, a northern fur seal, an animal usually found in Alaska and California, turned up on a beach in Hawaii, thousands of miles away from the seal's normal habitat.


Several beach-goers at Sunset Beach in Oahu spotted the seal lying on some rocks by the shore. After taking a closer look, the bystanders realized the out-of-town animal was weak and emaciated.

David Schofield, a marine-mammal-response coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told AP that this is the first time something like this has happened with a northern fur seal. On rare occasions, an elephant seal makes its way from California to Hawaii, but never this smaller species.

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Right now, scientists are unsure how the young, female seal made her way to the island. Some believe that the animal could have hitched a ride on a cargo ship or debris left in the ocean from Japan's tsunami. Most professionals theorize that the seal simply got caught in an unfortunate current and lost her course.

The seal is receiving care at the Honolulu Zoo, but is being kept under quarantine. Northern fur seals are known to carry several diseases that could easily affect the non-immune and endangered Hawaiian-monk-seal population.

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The zoo hopes to send this accidental runaway to the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, Calif. in the near future. The center is experienced in rehabilitating northern fur seals that hit hard times, or in this case, rough currents.

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