A recently dead harbor seal at Letnikof Cove is missing its head. Well, most of it. The skull bones are still there and intact.
The phenomenon has appeared a few times throughout the state. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s regional stranding coordinator said they have not quite figured out what is killing the seals, or getting to them after they’ve died.
“Dead animal, live animal, entangled. Any marine mammal. Even if you’re not sure and you think there’s an animal in distress, a marine mammal, you call that hotline,” she said. The ideal is that NOAA could send a volunteer or response team out to handle each reported stranding or death. Keogh said tracking these types of deaths helps scientists keep an eye out for unusual cases or an emerging threat. The response to a stranding often depends on whether there are volunteers in the region who can do a site visit. They collect samples, like viral swabs, to look for diseases, especially with fresh dead animals because that means they’re not too decomposed.
A teen in British Columbia recently tested positive for an avian flu infection, which officials in Canada believe may be the first human case caught in the country.
Harbor Seal Letnikof Cove Mandy Keogh National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration
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