A leopard seal hauled out on a Christchurch beach over the past week was moved and sadly euthanised today.
The uncommon Antarctic visitor was first seen last Thursday on Taylors Mistake beach and spent most of this week resting on Sumner Beach.
Department of Conservation Senior Biodiversity Ranger Mailee Stanbury says the young female leopard seal was unwell and in declining condition.
"It's unusual for a leopard seal to spend more than a few days on one beach at this time of year and this animal was clearly unwell. She had been getting weaker and more lethargic over the week.
"Yesterday, we had a wildlife vet from the South Island Wildlife Hospital assess the seal, who determined she likely had pneumonia and was dying.
"To avoid the seal suffering from continued disturbance from people and dogs on such a busy beach we moved it to a location where it could be safely euthanised.
"DOC generally takes a hands-off approach in these situations and lets nature take its course. But sadly, in this case, we've had to intervene to avoid her continuing to suffer.
"We'd like to thank the local volunteers in the Sumner and Taylors Mistake Seal/Penguin Group, who have been on the beach every day this week and done an amazing job informing the public and keeping people and dogs from disturbing the seal," says Mailee.
The leopard seal will be taken to the University of Canterbury where a necropsy will be carried out to determine why it died.
DOC is working Ngai Tuāhuriri and Ngāti Wheke Rūnanga to determine an appropriate burial site for the seal following the postmortem.
Leopard seals mostly live in Antarctica but during autumn and winter they disperse through the Southern Ocean and sometimes visit New Zealand. In recent years, we have seen two or three leopard seals visit the Canterbury coast each year.
Unusually, DOC staff saw another leopard seal swimming in Akaroa Harbour on Thursday this week when they were out taking water samples in Akaroa Marine Reserve. The healthy-looking seal swam up to the boat to check it out before swimming away.
If you are lucky enough to see a seal on the beach, remember to keep yourself and your dogs at least 20 metres away from it. This is to avoid causing stress for the seal, and to keep you and your pet safe.
