Don’t stand so close to me

Seal pups were social distancing before it was cool

By Gretchen Ammerman

Oregon Coast TODAY

There are few things on the planet as cute as a baby seal and, for them, that’s bad news.

“We can’t really blame people for wanting to pick up the babies or help them in some way when they see them on the beach,” said Jim Rice, Oregon Marine Mammal Stranding Network program manager. “But it’s the worst thing you can do for them.”

As hard as it is, Rice said, people need to ignore their sad eyes and pitiful sounds.

“They are really hard for people to resist, even if they know better, because they look so helpless and will even cry. But what they are waiting for, and what they really need, is for mom to come back and feed them. The more human interaction there is, the lower the chances are for that to happen.”

The network’s busiest season for protecting seal pups is upon us: it begins in March and ends in June, with the peak pupping happening in May.

“We had a lot of stranding reports early, but then it’s been a bit quiet,” Rice said. “I’m ready for it to start back up and be very busy again, though.”

The network depends heavily on volunteers and partnerships to handle the hundreds of reports of stranded and distressed marine mammals, including whales, they receive every year.

“We collaborate with state park rangers and law enforcement officers,” Rice said. “But mostly we rely on our network of volunteers. People move, they retire, they come and go, but we generally have over 50 people statewide that jump in when they are needed.”

In high incident locations, like Lincoln City, Rice uses a WhatApp chatroom to efficiently update the network about where help is needed along the entire Oregon Coast.

“We welcome anyone who is interested in being part of the network,” he said. “We need people that are willing to post signs and interact with people to ensure they are leaving the pups alone.”

Sometimes, sadly, they have to also be willing to take some abuse.

“Last year, there were volunteers that were actually accosted because people didn’t want to be told that they need to not do anything, to simply let wildlife do what it needs to do without interference.”

Jane H. has been volunteering with the network since 2011.

“I’m a first responder for animals reported on the beach, which is the primary thing that all our volunteers do,” she said. “The biggest big part of the job is pup season, and educating people that that’s where mama put them, to leave them alone and that they are protected under the Endangered Species Act. We call it ‘seal sitting.’”

Since she started as a seal sitter, Jane has seen a change in how people interact with the pups, a change that has kept pace with the growth of social media.

“Sadly, 10 years ago you could put a circle in the sand around a pup, put up a sign then leave them for a few hours and come back and they would be fine,” she said. “Now, with the growth of camera phones and things like Facebook and Instagram, it is completely different. Everyone wants their cute animal encounter photo. I heard about one person who laid a toddler on a seal pup that still had a visible umbilical cord. We also get groups of people crowding to pose next to them. It’s not ideal.”

As someone who knows her, I can attest to the fact that Jane is a person who is slow to judge and quick to forgive.

“This has been a difficult year for everyone and tensions are up,” she said. “People don’t always know or remember the rules and that these animals are protected. People might think ‘It’s just me doing this so it’s okay,’ but if over 100 people are doing it thinking they are the only ones, every single one of them is contributing to making a huge impact on that pup’s life.”

Even so, after 10 years, Jane’s enthusiasm for the work hasn’t diminished and she wants to ensure people can still come away with a positive experience.

“I always have binoculars and am always willing to share them,” she said. “Anything to keep people back from the pups but still allow them a special and positive encounter with nature.”

Though the network always welcomes volunteers, Jane is happy to deputize any coastal resident to do the simple task of protecting the pups.

“So many locals already do things like regularly pick up trash,” she said. “We can all be ambassadors for the beach because this is our backyard and we are blessed to have these marine animals in it.  Anyone can grab a stick, put a big circle around a stranded pup, and write “Stay back’ and ‘Stop.’”

The Marine Mammal Protection Act guidelines specify 50 yards for the zone that should be kept around a stranded animal, but Jane has an easier way to figure out the sweet spot.

“Basically, if the animal isn’t paying attention to you, you are far enough away.”

The things that keeps Jane going are the far more frequent positive interactions that she has had.

“By the end of seal pup season, you’ve helped many, many people learn to love these animals and be more likely to protect them, and it’s so joyful to get to interact with people in this way,” she said. “I definitely get more out of it than I give.

“My favorite thing is getting kids involved,” she added. “One time, there was a pup for a few days in one spot and there were some kids from one family that were staying nearby. They had never seen a seal pup and they were so enamored, so I sent them to go get sticks to help make a circle, and they basically adopted this seal. By the third day they were educating people about why the pup was there and why it needed to be left alone. It was really cute.”

The Marine Mammal Stranding Network does more than just work to protect seal pups. Volunteers also respond to reports of stranded whales and other pinnipeds, dead or alive; even dead animals provide valuable study opportunities for wildlife professionals. The rules for any stranded marine mammal are pretty much the same, though. In addition to not touching them:

●      Don’t try to drive them back into the water

●      Don’t pour water on a seal or sea lion

●      Don’t try to feed them

●      Don’t allow dogs near marine mammals, dead or alive, as they can carry viruses and bacteria that can be transmitted to humans and pets.

You can also help by photographing them from a safe distance and emailing pictures with the time, date, the general location of the animal, visible lesions, wounds or tags and any obvious signs of human interaction like entanglement in fishing gear, to stranding@oregonstate.edu.

Most of the time, helping stranded animals is pretty quiet and boring, if it’s being done right.

“We get people that have watched the Discovery Channel and they think there’s going to be a response team that’s going to swoop in and they are going to see this dramatic thing in an action that they will get to be a part of,” Rice said. “But it’s almost never like that.”

Marine mammals are protected by federal law, meaning it is illegal for unauthorized persons to disturb, handle or feed them; and that people can potentially face a fine if they do. Rice would like to never have to mention that fact, though.

“We like to believe that people will do the right thing once they understand what’s best for the animal,” he said. “But if people can’t seem to get that message, reminding them about the law doesn’t hurt.”

The primary thing that came through after speaking to people that do this work is that you can’t give the simple message enough times.

“There’s a critical time when the pup is dependent on the mom for survival,” Rice said. “Until that moment it relies on her for nursing. If there are people there, it’s going to keep the mom from coming ashore; that is the thing that will hurt the animal, not the fact that it’s lying alone on the beach. No matter how many times we say it, the story just repeats itself, year after year.”

To report an injured, stranded, or dead marine mammal, call the Oregon State Police Tipline at 800-452-7888 or OMMSN Stranding Cell Phone at 541-270-6830 or email stranding@oregonstate.edu.