Video: Seals released into the wild after being in care

Staff from the National Wildlife Centre in Fishcross had been treating the seals for varying lengths of time and successfully released all five back in to open water at Silver Sands beach in Aberdour. Scotland’s animal welfare charity is currently caring for approximately 60 seals at the centre.

All seals at the centre have Harry Potter-themed names. Of the five that were released at Aberdour, Mundungus had been in the charity’s care for the longest. He arrived in Fischross on 13 November last year after he was found to be underweight on a beach in East Lothian.

Mundungus’ arrival was closely followed by Bagman and Moony, who came in to the Society’s care on 21 November and 27 November last year respectively. Bagman was emaciated when he was picked up at Ardross, whilst Moony was underweight and appeared to have washed up on the Fife coast following storms.

They were followed by Crabbe, who washed up near Dundee with nasal discharge and wounds on 1 December. Of the five released recently, Griphack arrived last. He was discovered near Arbroath on 5 January 2019 and was underweight.

Colin Seddon, manager of the centre, said: “It is immensely rewarding to witness grey seal pups regain their strength and then to help them successfully move back in to open seas. All five of the seals came in to our care with varying issues and we are really happy to see all of them make a full recovery.

“Whilst all of these seals were found on the east coast of Scotland, we have rescued seals across the length of breath of the country. In recent months, animal rescue officers have aided seals from Barra, Lewis, Islay, Mull, Caithness and other locations.”

On average, it costs the Scottish SPCA £500 per seal the organisation cares for.