Gunshot-wounded harbor seal pup fights for survival in Washington state

A three-week-old male harbor seal pup is in critical but stable condition at SeaLife Response, Rehab and Research in Des Moines, Washington, after veterinarians found he had been shot in the head. The pup was rescued from the Smith Gardens tidal flats in Bellingham and admitted over the Fourth of July weekend, adding a new case to a string of marine mammal shootings that is drawing scrutiny from wildlife officials.

SR3 said the case is the third marine mammal it has treated in less than a year for gunshot injuries. Two earlier Washington harbor seal cases involved adult seals rescued in the Hood Canal area and in Quilcene; both died from their injuries. If the Bellingham pup keeps improving, SR3 said he may receive a CT scan to better assess his chances of survival and help guide further treatment.

Casey McLean, SR3’s executive director and a veterinary nurse, has described the pattern as disturbing and linked it to a familiar misconception that seals are to blame for falling salmon runs. SR3 said harbor seals eat more than 60 species of marine life, and the group argues that removing seals and sea lions would not bring salmon runs back because the collapse reflects broader environmental pressures. McLean also said the pup may have been shot while on the water, which would suggest the shooter was aiming at an adult animal instead.

The Washington cases have been forwarded to NOAA Law Enforcement and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Office of Law Enforcement. Harbor seals are protected under the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act, which generally makes it illegal to harass, hunt, capture or kill marine mammals and can carry civil fines, jail time and forfeiture in some cases. The law gives investigators a framework, but the recent shootings also point to a harder problem on the coast: carcasses and injured animals may never be examined unless someone spots and reports them.

Sara Penhallegon of Central Valley Animal Rescue said the earlier Hood Canal seal was found suffering on a dock near Quilcene Bay, underscoring how these incidents are discovered by chance. A separate case this spring heightened attention on marine-mammal mistreatment when Washington resident Igor Lytvynchuk pleaded not guilty in Honolulu after a witness video allegedly showed him throwing a rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal; he was ordered to stay away from Hawaii beaches while the case proceeds.