SEAL
ALERT-SA
the
rescue
18 FEBR 2009 :
Well
in the pic below, it is only half the story, as the pic
illustrates only 25 of the 60 baby seals currently rescued
and at the centre - Francois Hugo Seal
Alert-SA
Date:
February 11, 2009
SEAL ALERT-SA
MEDIA RELEASE 11-02-2009
Private Baby
Seal Rescue Centre
- Full -
Francois
Hugo of Seal Alert-SA
and his more than 60 baby Cape fur seals
Annually government and World Wildlife Fund
(WWF) policy of banning CITES Appendix II listed
endangered and protected Cape fur seals from all their
original endemic islands in order to make these islands
exclusively for seabird conservation - has its
environmental and cruel negative side. It causes thousands
of baby seals to be swept off their small displaced to
awash rocks. At some of the 9 offshore colonies, the entire
year's cohorts of the colony is effected. Most drown or
become shark prey. The reason for this is although a marine
mammal, these babies are not born with a waterproof
skin/fur and cannot swim until 6 - 8 weeks of age. During
mean pupping time each December, Cape Town City Refuse
Department collects and disposes of 500-700 dead baby seals
that get washed ashore on our public beaches - daily.
1 in 100 baby
seals make the 6 - 22 km swim to shore alive. But, with 36
000 babies born annually in the Cape, this can involve many
hundreds if not thousands needing rescue annually.
Government's
policy on this is that they will not fund seal rescue, nor
allow seals to return or populated former islands, nor
will they make available pilchard stock's to cease the cost
of seal rescue. Instead their policy is if the seal is
assessed healthy by a local vet, it should be returned to
the colony. However to date in the Cape, government has
undertaken no such rescue mission. Instead, its awarded the
only Seal Rescue permit to the SPCA, who in turn responds
and receives seal rescue calls from members of the public.
The SPCA has them all then put down, as it believes baby
seals cannot be successfully rehabilitated over 12 months,
and weaned successfully to hunt on its own in the wild.
There is also
the question of costs, with each baby consuming R20 000,
mainly involving the purchase of pilchards for their baby
liquidized fish feed formula for the year.
the
more than 50 baby seals that have arrived
at the Seal Alert-SA centre in recent weeks
Francois Hugo of Seal Alert-SA has set-up private Seal
Rescue and Rehabilitation facilities in Hout Bay Harbour
over the past 10 - years. Its is self-funded. Each
year I try to take in a select group of babies from
different effected seal colonies, in order to further and
pioneer the ability to successfully raise a group of babies
in order to eventually establish the means of re-populating
these extinct seal islands.
Things are very
different this year. Mass baby seal strandings normally
stop within the 1st week of January, as by then, either
most have drowned or the remaining survivors have developed
some means of swimming, and can therefore regain the awash
rock on their own, if swept off repeatidly. But this year,
daily, much smaller groups have been coming ashore
constantly since January, with reports of 6-8 alive, and as
many dead.
The most effected seal
colony, appears to be the seal colony in False Bay. Where
daily from Strand to Simonstown, NSRI, local vets, divers,
beach constables and members of the public, have been
reporting or bringing baby seals to Seal Alert-SA's
facilities. Often the SPCA gets there first, and this has
upset many members of the public when they find the
SPCA taking the seal and putting them down, without
any attempt at rehabilitation or rescue or care. Even the
Editor of Top Billing Magazine found a baby pup walking in
the road and brought it to Seal Alert-SA late one evening,
and another Riccardo Gramatica (021-681 3142) was very
distressed to learn of Seal Alert-SA's rescue efforts after
handing the baby seal to the SPCA.
Dive Centre in Strand
(084 900 9163) has even made their vehicle available for
daily transport of baby seals to Seal Alert-SA.
The problem is, I am
private, I receive no government funding or funding from
any large ngo's. 58 baby seals at the centre have already
indebted me privately to the sum of over 1 million rand,
and although I would like to help the public and seals, I
am physically maxed to the limit and have no idea, how I
will find the money to cover this rehab for the year of
rehabilitation required.
Last year, I successfully rehabbed
a group of 13 babies, but 58 and counting is a crisis.
Pilchard fish processing
factories or quota holders are unable or unwilling to
donate fish, our primary costs, as they all claim reduced
quotas and scarcity of fish. This further increases my
costs as I am now required to purchase pilchards for the
baby seals at R9 kg. Government should step in and make our
fish rescue costs available at no cost.
It is not logical or
community, to expect one individual to cater for the needs
of both the seals and members of the whole of the Cape
Peninsula. With many residents screaming at Seal Alert-SA
for no longer being able to respond to stranded baby seals.
Seal Alert-SA's Seal Rescue
centre is full.
Unfortunately with this type
of species rehabilitation, volunteer work is not possible,
as bonds need to be formed throughout the year, in order to
able the pup to develop hunting and swimming skills in the
wild, whilst still being able to return and suckle from his
mom, daily or in our case, tube-fed into the stomach.
I therefore appeal for
understanding, as I am doing more than is humanly
possible. The rest is in the public's hands.
For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
021-790 8774
083 949 6944
* . * . *
Swimming in seals, Lots
of them !
Date: January 20, 2009
Hi All,
Work on the main centre is
progressing well, I have demolished the two internal pools,
replastered and repainted the walls etc, etc. The next job
is the mezzanine level above the rescue craft, and then the
roof. Work has also started on the outside, repairing and
repainting walls etc.
It has been hectic lately with
seal rescue after seal rescue. 3 days ago I rescued 8 baby
seals in one day. Something has caused many seals to wash
off the largest offshore colony in False Bay, hundreds are
washing ashore dead. Many of the seals display mental-type
disorders falling about, muscle tremours. First thought
appears to be distemper virus which is very contagious, and
could effect existing seals at centre and other seals. But
as some are recovering, it appears either a toxin in the
fish or poisoning. I still feel, that their behaviour is
related to acute stress, which means something very violent
occurred on their offshore colony during breeding time. I
have heard rumours that helicopters were landing on the
small rock recently erecting cell-phone masts.
Tests and time and further
investigation will tell, but its a nightmare, as the SPCA
is responding only to put the babies down. So its a race to
get to these babies first, to save them first from the
SPCA. I now have 22 babies in the centre, and its a
nightmare as they display mental disorders, which makes
handling difficult and I am covered in bite marks, my hands
are torn to pieces. One only has experience this first hand
to understand how difficult it is raising 22 babies for the
next 12 months. Just feeding them three times a day is a
nightmare, as they all look them same, and its difficult to
keep track of who has been fed and who has not. Raising
these 22 babies is going to be an immense challenge.
Its dawned on me why I do this,
and suffer the emotional test of living with their dying
plight over and over again. The Seals represent all
that is good and natural, whilst mankind callous and
unconcerned throws such suffering at them. Through all
this, they respond in love and affection, and just long for
kindness in their hour of need. Amazing animals.
22 baby seals and more expected,
is going to crash my budget as this alone is going to cost
close to 1/2 million rand.. My plan, is to try and get
sponsorship for CCTV video camera's and large LCD TV
screens, where tourists can then sit upstairs on the
mezzanine level and view the going's on from the different
cameras placed around the centre, some even underwater.
Hopefully I could charge them an entrance fee, as a means
to raising some additional funding. Hopefully the
construction work will be complete by April/May.
Besides this I have disentangled 6
seals, and no sooner, then another at least 8 seals
entangled have come into the harbour. All things consider
my facilities is really being put to the test, and so far,
all the planning and design appears to be working like a
dream. I have had to ask my builder, to jump in and help
prepare their feed, as feeding alone now takes 3 hours per
session, three times a day. Anyway I am surrounded and
swimming in sick, injured and dying seals, an entire colony
full, and loving every minute of it. Last years pups
release, has gone very well, with all returning to the
centre regularly, one was even away for an entire month,
and only one I have had no sight of.
Some other good news, I received
this,
"Dear Mr.
Hugo. Macmillan South Africa will be publishing
“English
for All for Namibia Grade 9” in a first
print run of 5000 copies for distribution in Namibia. The
title will retail at R 88,70. We kindly request
permission to use an extract from the text,
“Baby
Seals Flee Namibian Sealers to South Africa and
Angola”
www.africanconservation.org/dcforum/77.html
as
it appears on the African Conservation Foundation
website. If possible, this permission request includes
future reprint rights. We would greatly appreciate
your consent to our request.. "
This is great, as now children in school will be reading
about the Namibian cull. Below as a replacement for the
video clip, I am sending you a sequence of pics on a rather
strange rescue the other day. Many seals come to my rafts
to die. The other morning I noticed, a seal starting to
convult on the raft, which is the first step to death. I
raced for my dive suit swam out, retrieved him just in
time, swam him back to the centre and so far he is pulling
through.
Keep well, all my best Francois.
Main
centre with various seal rescue craft.
baby pup
recently attacked by seagulls after stranding, pecking out
his eye. The Centre with 22 babies, and Mumkin my 4year old
pup in the centre.
the
swim to the raft
the
rescue
last
years pups look on.
the
swim back
feeding
other pups inbetween
and
larger seals below centre
tube
feeding into the stomach of the dying seal pup.
