Seehundbaby Elke makes garden near North Friesland unsafe!

Seehundbaby Elke makes garden near North Friesland unsafe!

Friedrichskoog, Deutschland - A seal baby conquers the hearts in North Friesland

On July 12, a family from North Friesland discovered a small seal in her garden. In their daily work around the geese, they noticed the sweet animal. Anneke Klützke, who made the discovery, suspects that the howler comes from the nearby Tümlauer-Koog, where the seals live in large numbers. It is estimated that the small seal covered a distance of one and a half to three kilometers before landing in the garden. After the find, the family immediately turned to the Sehundstation Friedrichskoog, which takes care of such emergencies.

At the moment, the seal, which has been given the name Elke, is currently relaxing in the station. As the NDR reports, the little naval resident has an umbilical inflammation that is not unusual for "howler", these are young seals. Nevertheless, she is doing well and she can eat her fish ration completely since July 21. Due to her age of around 10 to 14 days, Elke takes a long time to relax completely. It is currently in quarantine until full recovery.

The work of the Sehundstation Friedrichskoog

The Sehundstation Friedrichskoog is recognized as the only legitimate recording point for Robben in Schleswig-Holstein and an important point of contact for orphaned seal babies, which cannot survive without their mothers. Over 6,000 seals are born in the German Wadden Sea annually. The main birthday has just reached its high phase, and from mid -June to mid -July the rearing of seal babies is in full swing. The zookeepers in Friedrichskoog currently maintain 153 young seals, while 111 animals are supplied in the neighboring station in Norddeich. These numbers impressively show how much the season is in full swing.

in Friedrichskoog, for example, Lønne, the first howler of 2021, recently brought to the station and was only one day old at the time. Other howler will also be expected in the next few weeks, so that the station will soon have more busy days ahead. The animals are papped up to the release by a strict feeding regime, which takes place several times a day. Before they are released into freedom, the seals have to weigh 25 kilograms and receive 3 to 4 kilograms of fish per day.

A look at the protection of the seals

The birthing and berths of the seals are difficult to access for humans because they are in a protective zone that must not be entered. In order not to worry the animals, it is important to keep a large distance. The small seals emit contact sounds to call their mothers when they are separated. The nursing staff in the wards are trained to create the calm and freed from the stress potential surroundings that are so important for survival and recovery of the seal babies.

The story of Elke and the hard work of the seal stations illustrate how important it is to protect these animals and ensure that they have a chance of living in freedom. After all, there is nothing better than seeing our seals again in the sea - and the first steps to their new freedom have already been taken.