PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — A hooded seal is being treated at Mystic Aquarium after the animal was spotted eating rocks in Providence.

Sarah Callan, the manager of Mystic’s animal rescue program , says her team was first made aware of the seal’s presence on Aug. 29 when it was spotted at Napatree Point in Westerly.

“It was a very interesting call to get,” Callan said. “We weren’t expecting to see a hooded seal because it is such a rare species to see in our coverage area over here.”

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , hooded seals live in cold waters in the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. Callan says the species hasn’t been spotted in Rhode Island since 2013.

“The seal initially looked great,” Callan said. The female seal, which appears to be about a year old, was spotted again on Sept. 9 in Mystic and then on Sept. 13 in Providence.

Since the seal was in a busy area, members of Callan’s team put rope and signs up around the animal to try and keep people away. Mystic Aquarium knew they had to step in and rescue the seal when she was spotted eating rocks.

“We received reports to our hotline of people approaching this animal and trying to interact with it,” Callan said. “This is an arctic species that is used to being on ice packs and on snow… so, this animal went into this stress response which we see from harp seals and other arctic species and they eat the substrate they’re on,” Callan said.

Mystic Aquarium was able to capture and assess the seal, confirming that she was severely dehydrated and her stomach was full of rocks and gravel.

“We’re working right now on stabilizing this seal and making sure that the hydration levels are back up to where they should be,” Callan explained. “We’re trying to tube feed the seal lots of fluids, kind of like a ‘fish smoothie’ essentially, and hopefully some of that gravel and those rocks will start to pass.”

The team at Mystic is guarded about the animal’s prognosis, but the seal is still reactive and responsive. “She loves her ice,” Callan said with a smile. “We keep giving her lots of ice throughout the day that she just keeps eating up.”

If the seal recovers and becomes able released back into the wild, Mystic will attach a satellite tag to the animal so they can track her movements and learn more about her migration patterns.

Anyone who comes across a marine mammal or sea turtle that may need help or has died should stay away from the animal and call Mystic Aquarium’s 24-hour hotline at 860-572-5955 x107.

“We want to keep a distance from every marine animal we see on the beach,” Callan said. “This case really highlights the need for that distance, because these animals get stressed very easily, especially a species who is not used to this area and this type of environment.”

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