Image: Ken Walker
By Danielle Cookish
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.” -Aristotle
Recognizing excellence comes easily when we take a look at marine animal rescue communities around the world. Today, we spotlight Sea Research Foundation, located in Mystic, Connecticut, part of Mystic Aquarium Institute for Exploration.
Sea Research Foundation has been rescuing stranded marine mammals on the Connecticut coastlines since 1976. Rescue efforts with Sea Research’s first responder volunteer network stretch to Maine, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Fisher’s Island, New York and even Texas. Staff members and volunteers respond to hundreds of public calls with reports of marine animal stranding.
Mystic Aquarium is a founding member of The Northeast Region Stranding Network. Their teams are made up of people who have dedicated their lives to coming to the aid of marine mammals in trouble and working around the clock to care for them, rehabilitate them, and if they are fit, release them.
These efforts have paid off enormously for the welfare of the animals in the northeast. To date, Mystic Aquarium has responded to more than 1,100 stranded seals, whales, dolphins, porpoises, and sea turtles. From 2007 to 2012, the aquarium has accepted 113 seals from other facilities across the country for rehabilitation.
Mystic Aquarium’s elite science and research teams monitor and study the animals and use that data to find reasons for strandings, illnesses, and population concerns in the northeast area.
This is a perfect example of why the existence of zoos and aquariums is so critical to the wellbeing of our local wildlife. They give us a chance to help animals in need, learn from them, and to teach others.
If you visit the aquarium, expect a highly educational, hands-on experience. You may view a large part of their rescue facility where team members are happy to tell you all about the animals they’re currently treating.
Ziggy Star is a recent success story. Ziggy is a Northern Fur Seal who was found severely emaciated, hardly alive on a beach along the Mendocino coast. She was rescued by The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito.
After much diagnostic testing, she was diagnosed with a condition called cerebral demyelination. This is a serious neurological condition that affects her ability to process images correctly and coordinate her movements. She presented symptoms of poor coordination when ambulating, which is a condition referred to as ataxia. Ataxia is exhibited by a lack of voluntary coordination of the muscles when in motion and signals that there is a dysfunction in the part of the brain that coordinates movement. Upon further testing by The Marine Mammal Center, Ziggy was also found to have a cardiomyopathy, a heart muscle disease. Due to the nature of her illness, Ziggy is unable to be released back into the wild.
After a touching show of financial support by the community, she was transferred to her forever home, Mystic Aquarium. And after months of rehabilitation there, she is doing well. She is preparing to join the other Northern Fur Seals at Mystic Aquarium’s Pacific Northwest Exhibit.
Without the tremendous amount of first responders, thorough diagnostics, expert medical care, and the dedication of these teams, Ziggy would have died on the beach that day. Instead, she is going to live comfortably with the assistance, care, and love she needs.
We applaud and thank Mystic Aquarium for its decades of extraordinary efforts to help animals in need and for standing by their mission, which is, “To inspire people to care for and protect our ocean planet through education, research and exploration.”
If you are in the Northeast Coastal area of Connecticut, Massachusetts, or Rhode Island and see a stranded marine animal, remember to give it plenty of space and never approach or touch the animal. Call Mystic Aquarium’s rescue line at 860.572.5955 ext.107.