Bella the seal is far from home
She is in a remarkably good condition for such a young seal so far from home.
Cute, appealing, gorgeous and – oh my gosh take your breath away – is the beautiful little Bella recently found on Uvongo beach.
Bella is a young subantarctic fur seal (Arctocephalus tropicalis) who is very far from her natural home range in the southern parts of the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.
Ann Kunz from South African Association for Marine Biological Research said Bella is the second stranded seal they have admitted into their care this year.
“The name of the first seal started with ‘A’, and this little girl’s name therefore had to start with the letter ‘B’.”
Bella was seen on September 2 trying to leave the water at Southbroom and other beaches on the lower South Coast before finally hauling out on the beach at Uvongo on September 3.
“Although she appeared in remarkably good condition for such a young seal so far from home, the decision was made to bring her into the care of uShaka Sea World staff in order to give her the chance to rest and recover,” said Kunz.
She is certainly making the most of her quiet time as she spends most of the day lying around the pool and only ventures into the water to feed. She is currently feeding on sardines three times a day.
Kunz said she is incredibly agile in the water and it takes her only a few minutes to scoot around the pool gobbling up all the sardines offered.
“We are working with various seal experts to establish what her ideal release weight should be and will begin working towards her return to the southern ocean.”
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