By ALANA MITCHELSON
A seal was lucky to have survived being struck by a harpoon last weekend, one of the most deliberate acts of cruelty that local marine wildlife experts have seen.
An Australian fur seal was sighted with a harpoon lodged in its back at Chinaman’s Hat, in Port Philip Bay off Queenscliff, by a dolphin swim tour guide on Saturday morning.
The Dolphin Institute was alerted to monitor the situation until the AGL Marine Response unit could attend to the scene, dart the injured seal and transfer it to Melbourne Zoo for treatment.
DELWP Wildlife Officer Samantha Moore said the harpoon barb was “firmly embedded” between the seal’s shoulder blades and it required surgery.
“We understand that the seal was stabbed twice resulting in trauma across its shoulder blades. There was about two feet of the gaff handle left protruding from the wound,” Ms Moore said.
“It was clearly a homemade implement that would not have served any legitimate use for fishing purposes.
“We’re very concerned about the incident because it’s out of the norm. There are plenty of entanglements and we’ve seen a lot of distressing cases, but never have we seen anything so intentional.”
Ms Moore said the wound looked fresh and was glad the seal was spotted not long after the incident as the wound could have been infected fairly quickly.
The AGL Marine Response unit restrained and sedated the five-year-old male fur seal after determining they were unable to remove the barb at the scene.
The harpoon head was successfully removed. The veterinary doctors provided the seal pain relief and antibiotics to assist its recovery overnight.
The 80 kilogram seal was released on shore at the Blairgowrie boat ramp on Sunday morning.
Marine Response unit coordinator Mark Keenan said seals were protected creatures by law.
“Seals are beautiful animals, with similar mannerisms to dogs. They’re pretty stoic animals and in a short period of time, the seal had been significantly compromised,” Mr Keenan said.
“When we arrived at the scene the seal was on the lower platform of the structure with an obvious handle hanging off of it. Other seals were bumping into the gaff handle and it looked pretty tired.
“We darted the seal and it didn’t respond greatly to that which was a bit concerning because it gave us the impression it was in a lot of pain.
“It was important we released the seal into the wild as soon as possible because the longer animals are kept in care, the more likely they are to become humanised and reliant.”
Commercial operators have kept an eye on the seal and reported that the animal was seen swimming happily near Chinaman’s Hat on Monday.
The harpoon is being handled as evidence and analysed as the incident continues to be under investigation.
Wildlife experts urged those with information to phone the department on 136 186. For reports of distressed, entangled or injured wildlife, phone the marine response unit on 1300 245 678.
