Seal’s a flippin’ mystery: Stranded runaway may be exhausted from mating

A CONFUSED seal found in a field 20 miles from the sea may have been exhausted by the mating season, an expert has said.

The seal in the fieldLIVERPOOL ECHO

The sorrowful seal that got himself stranded in a field 20 miles from sea

The bull grey seal weighing up to 39 stones (550lbs or 250kg) is thought to have worked his way up a river and then a brook before getting stranded in the mud.

And Stephen Marsh of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue said: “He was not as fiery or as feisty as they can be.

“At this time of year most adult bulls will be very tired because they will have been mating so much.”

The bull seal was found in the field in Newton-le-Willows near St Helens, Merseyside.

Mr Marsh said: “We think has swum the Mersey and then come up the brooks which are tidal.

“He may have been chasing fish or he may have been seeking shelter from bad weather.”

He was found by farmer Gary Watkinson who said: “We woke up this morning and found a seal in our field, which is quite unusual to say the least.

“We usually have a few ponies and a couple of sheep but never any seals. We’re about 20 miles away from the coast.

“It’s definitely come up from the brook near here. I tracked its movements and you can see the marks in the soil.” 

Nicola Watkinson, who works at the nearby Red Bank Farm Shop, said: “Someone rang up this morning and said there’s a great big sea lion outside our shop.

At this time of year most adult bulls will be very tired because they will have been mating so much

Stephen Marsh, British Divers Marine Life Rescue

“We’ve got traffic piled up with people looking at it, and there’s lots of police here.

“They are trying to get near it but it’s not very friendly.”

A woman who lives nearby said she saw the seal when she opened her curtains - and assumed it was a pony which had collapsed.

She said: “I thought it must have been hurt. It was right up against next door’s fence.

“The poor thing must be so scared.” 

Police from Merseyside and Cheshire, the RSPCA and BDMLR were soon on the scene.

Mr Marsh said the RSPCA herded him into a pig crate and have taken him to their Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre in Nantwich, Cheshire.

He will be given a check-up by vets and released into the sea when he is ready.

A Merseyside Police spokesman said: “A report came in from dog walker at 9.39am of the animal in a farmers’ field off Winwick Road.

“It’s within a field that’s fenced. We need to work out who it belongs to, and how it got there.

“There’s no danger to the public, we just want to ensure the animal’s welfare. 

“Seals are powerful animals and potentially dangerous. Police are advising the public to stay away from the area.”

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