Cornish Seal Sanctuary
| Cornish Seal Sanctuary | |
|---|---|
Seals at the sanctuary | |
Interactive map of Cornish Seal Sanctuary | |
| 50°05′31″N 5°12′09″W / 50.091968°N 5.202633°W | |
| Date opened | 1975 |
| Location | Gweek, Cornwall, UK |
| Website | sealsanctuary |
The Cornish Seal Sanctuary is a sanctuary for injured seal pups, and is owned by The SEA LIFE Trust. The centre is on the banks of the Helford River in Cornwall, UK, next to the village of Gweek.
History
The origins of the seal sanctuary go back to 1958 when the founder, Ken Jones, discovered a baby seal washed up on the beach near his home at St Agnes. This was the first of many rescues. By 1975, the work had outgrown the single pool at St Agnes and a new site was found at Gweek. The Gweek site slowly grew, and today has five pools and a specially designed hospital.
Rescue work
On average the centre has between sixty and seventy seals pups in their care, and in 2018 over eighty have been rescued from the wild. Main reasons for a pup's rescue can be because it is separated from their mothers and are unable to feed, or they can be entangled in marine litter.[1] The aim is to release them back into the wild having given them the best chance of survival.
The rescue normally starts with a call about an apparently abandoned pup. If the rescue team decide that the pup is in danger, it is captured and taken to the sanctuary. Upon arrival, a full medical assessment is carried out, and a course of treatment is decided. Many of the pups are malnourished, with infected wounds. When the seal starts to recover and gain weight, it is transferred to a convalescence pool, where it interacts with convalescing and resident seals, and learns to compete for its food.[1] After a few months, when the seal has reached a good weight and is back to full health, it is released into the sea, preferably near where it was originally discovered. Before release each seal is given a flipper tag, and recently also a hat tag which falls off at the first moult. These provide useful information on the survival rate of the rescues.
The sanctuary aims to rehabilitate all rescued pups and has an impressive record. Between 1981 and 2013 only four seals have been considered as unlikely to be able to survive in the wild. They have joined the full-time residents at the sanctuary Like Ray who has brain damage and is partially blind and is a favorite to many. The long-term residents are seals unable to survive in the wild for health reasons or just because they have been in captivity too long. Some of the residents share a pool with the rescue pups. They help at feeding times by demonstrating to the pups the best way to compete for their food.
Permanent Residents
The sanctuary's primary focus is rescue and rehabilitation, but some rescues can't be released back into the wild due to various reasons such as ongoing medical issues which require lifelong care, or the rescue becoming too socialised to human contact.
The sanctuary is currently home to 8 resident Grey Seals and 3 Common Seals, providing a safe and enriching environment for these animals that cannot be released.[2]
| Seal Name | Date Rescued | Type of Seal | Rescued from | Reason for Permanent Residency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banana | 14/08/2018 | Grey Seal | Trevellas Cove, Cornwall | Congenital brain issue requiring medication |
| Aayla | 01/2017 | Grey Seal | Bacton, Norfolk | Infection in bones required amputation of flipper digits and continuous care |
| Atlanta | 2001 | Grey Seal | Oban, Scotland | Blinded in both eyes from gull attacks requiring lifelong care |
| Marlin | 2002 | Grey Seal | Sennen Cove, Cornwall | Born completely blind |
| Pumpkin | 2011 | Grey Seal | Guernsey | Persistent kidney stones requiring lifelong medication |
| Willow | 2014 | Grey Seal | Donna Nook, Lincolnshire | Under-active thyroid requiring lifelong treatment |
| Jinx | 21/04/2017 | Grey Seal | Godrevy, Cornwall | Seal version of IBS requiring lifelong care |
| Yulelogs | 1989 | Grey Seal | North of England | Yulelogs was rescued in 1989 by a marine park in Northern England but was released when this park closed down. However, Yulelogs had become too familiar with humans and had no instinct to feed himself. Yulelogs was re-rescued by the RSPCA and transferred to the sanctuary following calls from concerned members of the public saying that he had been chasing people on the beach with buckets, believing that they contained fish. |
| Bo | 29/06/2013 | Common Seal | Born at the sanctuary | Born at the sanctuary |
| Buddy | 13/07/2014 | Common Seal | Born at the sanctuary | Born at the sanctuary |
| Jarvis | 09/2016 | Common Seal | Porthminster, Cornwall | Completely blind in both eyes |
The sanctuary has also become the permanent home to a group of 10 Icelandic puffins who were moved from the Beluga Whale Sanctuary in Vestmannaeyjar Harbour, Iceland to make room for more rescue puffins at the Beluga Whale Sanctuary.[5]
See also
References
- ^ a b Shannon, Georgina (26 July 2018). "Record-breaking year at Cornish Seal Sanctuary". The Cornishman. p. 36.
- ^ Merlin. "Cornish Seal Sanctuary | Official Website | Where every visit makes a difference". Cornish Seal Sanctuary. Retrieved 23 February 2026.
- ^ Merlin. "Common Seals | The Cornish Seal Sanctuary". Cornish Seal Sanctuary. Retrieved 23 February 2026.
- ^ Merlin. "Grey Seals". Cornish Seal Sanctuary. Retrieved 23 February 2026.
- ^ Merlin. "Rescue puffins in Cornwall". Cornish Seal Sanctuary. Retrieved 23 February 2026.