Time may be running out for a sea lion snared in a wire off the coast of Vancouver Island.
The large male, named Kiyo, was first spotted in Fanny Bay south of Comox late February with a wire wrapped tightly around its neck like a noose.
A two-day rescue effort was launched last week by the Vancouver Aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre to save Kiyo, but when rescuers arrived, they found there were too many animals that needed saving.
Half a dozen sea lions had plastic nooses around their necks, and while one was freed, Kiyo was left entangled.
“The animal we got today was only the third we have ever disentangled. So we can do it, but it’s a very, very intense effort,” aquarium veterinarian Dr. Martin Haulena said at the time.
Discarded plastic packing straps are to blame for many of the entanglements, and the aquarium said 5,556 of them were collected from Canadian shorelines last year alone.
The aquarium said it has no immediate plans to launch another mission to help Kiyo, because putting together a team and resources for each rescue takes time.
“Regardless of what we are able to accomplish for Kiyo, we are making plans to return in the future to try and disentangle more of these animals,” the aquarium said in a statement.
Their response comes as little comfort to a woman who’s been keeping a close eye on Kiyo through the lens of her camera.
Wildlife photographer Netania Chatelaine said she’s been snapping photos of the sea lion for months, documenting its struggle and pressuring experts to help it.
“It’s devastating, I’m taking shots today and it’s very emotional because I see the struggle,” she said, through tears. “If we saw … strangled dogs are cats, we’d be right on it. I don’t understand what the difference is when it comes to mammals, and the people that have the power can rescue them.”
The Vancouver Aquarium said Chatelaine did the right thing by reporting the animal in distress, and urged the public never to try to rescue marine mammals themselves.
Despite not saving Kiyo, researchers are learning more about freeing entangled sea creatures with every rescue operation.
“This is pioneering work, and due to the nature of the rescues, it requires a vet with marine mammal experience to be doing the darting and leading the animal care associated with these disentanglements,” said research associate Wendy Szanislo. “As the techniques are learned and refined, the goal is to train other veterinarians who have marine mammal experience. This in turn will benefit sea lions coast-wide.”
Haulena estimated that there could be as many as 400 sea lions off the Vancouver coast suffering a similar fate to Kiyo’s.
Those who see mammals in distress are asked to call the Marine Mammal Rescue Centre at 604-258-7325 or Fisheries and Oceans Canada at 1-800-465-4336.
