A 4-month-old seal named Northlands was released into the ocean off the coast of Rhode Island Tuesday, after being rescued from Bermuda nearly two months ago.
The team from Mystic Aquarium coordinated the release after spending the last month rehabilitating the seal.
When Northlands was rescued he weighed just 25 pounds.
Just before his release he weighed 83 pounds. The team at Mystic Aquarium said they worked with NOAA, National Marine Fisheries and Bermuda Aquarium to make the international seal rescue happen and transport the seal on a cargo jet.
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Finding seal pups in Bermuda is extremely rare and has only happened about six times in the last 100 years, according to the Mystic Aquarium team.
The gray seal was found dehydrated and malnourished after swimming in warm waters where there isn’t the right kind of food.
Northlands is wearing a satellite tag, which will allow the aquarium to track his movements in the ocean and not only provide specific information about seals, but about the ecosystem and ocean.
