Outer Banks beaches see influx of seals and turtles

Young harbor seals showing up lately on Outer Banks beaches can be fat and adorable, but like teething babies, wildlife biologists warn, they're cranky.

For apparently unrelated reasons, dozens of sea turtles, most dead, have also washed up in recent weeks.

Two of the seals were spotted this week on ocean beaches in Buxton and near Hatteras, and another was seen last week in Rodanthe, said Michelle Baker, lead sea turtle bio tech for Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

They're all healthy 40- to 60-pound juveniles who have "hauled out" on shore because they're molting - shedding their fur - and they're resting, Baker said. The Outer Banks is the southern most boundary of the harbor seal's habitat.

Baker said that people should not approach or touch the animals. Unless the seal looks emaciated or is immobile, it's likely the animal is just taking a break. Not only will seals bite, but it also is illegal to harass marine mammals. "Please stay away," she said Friday. "They just need their space."

Seal bites can carry the herpes virus or the mycoplasma bacteria. Even if the animal is healthy and it bites a person, Baker said, the seal must be put to sleep.

Four more of the marine mammals - a little banged-up but healthy - have also been spotted from Kill Devil Hills to Carova, said Karen Clark, education specialist with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. The last one had been sighted on Jan. 22 in Kill Devil Hills.

"They are pups, so like kids, they have cuts and scrapes," Clark said. "Their rough play is going to show up on these guys."

Most of the approximately 80 stranded sea turtles, all either threatened or endangered species, have been found on soundside beaches on numerous locations on Hatteras Island, Baker said. The majority of the them have been green turtles, she said, and nearly all were dead when they were found, or died shortly afterward.

Numerous loggerheads, "a couple" of Kemp's ridleys and one leatherback have also washed up, Baker said. Five live stranded turtles were taken for rehabilitation to the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island.

Baker said that the strandings can mostly be attributed to the sudden drop in the water temperature, which can put the turtles into a coma. The strandings started in

November, and the most recent one was Friday, she said.

"Unfortunately, we don't usually find them until they have died from the cold water," she said.

Other apparent causes include fishing nets and plastic litter. Biologic samples are taken from the turtles to try to

determine why they were stranded.

The single leatherback was found a few days ago on the oceanside in Avon, Baker said. They are rarely seen in North Carolina. The 4-foot-long turtle had died, she said, but at least its "exceptionally fresh" flesh provided valuable samples for biologists.

Although it's not clear what killed the immature female leatherback, some duct tape and a hot sauce wrapper was found in its gastro intestinal tract.

"It's just sad that they have trash in their system," she said.

Catherine Kozak, (252) 441-1711, cate.kozak@pilotonline.com