Marine Mammal Rescue Center
Vancouver, British Columbia
The Marine Mammal Rescue Center is located in the heart of Vancouver, B.C.'s port, one of the largest and busiest on the West Coast.
The stark contrast between the massive industrial surroundings and the fragility of the animals in the holding tanks is not lost on the employees.
The Marine Mammal Rescue Center is a branch of the renowned Vancouver Aquarium. In accordance with the mission of the Vancouver Aquarium (the conservation of aquatic life), the MMR uses its resources to rehabilitate marine mammals that have been found injured, ill, abandoned, or otherwise unable to return to their natural habitat.
A variety of holding tanks are used at MMR. Here, a staffer checks in on a harbor seal in Stage 1. The smaller, blue tanks in Stage 1 are used to temporarily hold the animals before they are given a medical examination. This stage is also a quarantine area, with each animal separate from one another so as to prevent the transmission of diseases.
The largest of the holding tanks, the Pre-release Pools are the final stage before rescued mammals are released back into the wild. These tanks allow the animals to learn how to chase live fish, socialize with others and exercise. At this point, the MMR staff begin to reduce their contact with the animals. Doing so allows wildness to return to the animal's nature, thus helping ensure a successful release back into their natural habitat.
A harbor seal in the medical examination room is being prepared to have a tracking device attached to its head. This allows the marine biologists to track its behavior one it is released back into the Salish Sea.
Measuring the weight and size of this harbor seal is an important step in its rehabilitation. Before it can be released, it must maintain a healthy weight. The seal's weight is also a factor in the application of anesthesia, one of the more sensitive aspects of the examination process.
Timing is everything while using anesthesia on an animal. Relatively small doses must be given for a harbor seal, which means the staff have a small window of time to complete the procedure. Every step of the process is timed to the second to ensure that the animal experiences as little stress as possible upon waking.
With such a small window of time, the team must act swiftly and precisely. Many hands make light work, as long as each staff member completes their roll without infringing on the others space.
After a year at the Marine Mammal Rescue facility, this harbor seal is ready to be released. The tracking device on its head will provide valuable data to the MMR staff on the seals location and distance travelled. One year after the device was attached, the glue used will wear down and the device will fall off.