Don’t Touch Me! Don’t Touch Anyone Who Looks Like Me!; Photo. More Ascender’s Photos.
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When the seals accidentally touch they bellow
and fuss, they throw their heads to the sky,
they wave and writhe and moan
the other away until again each feels
itself owner of the shoreline.
Landscapes with Elephant Seals and Umbrellas by C.J. Sage
I didn’t mention on my post the other day that we were on the way to The Marine Mammal Center when we were sidetracked into Fort Cronkhite and explored . The Marine Mammal Center rescues, rehabilitates, and does environmental research and education with marine mammals such as cetaceans and seals.
Elephant seal statue located in front of the center.
The major causes of marine animals needing rescue are loss of weight and dehydration, disease and/or parasites, injury from other sea animals or man, pollution and being caught in nets. The center is able to rehabilitate and release about 90% of the ones they rescue.
Those with weight loss and dehydration issues are placed in the “nursery” where they have a heated floor and wrapped in warm towels. These seals and sea lions usually did not learn to be competitive eaters and must first be tube fed “fish smoothies”, then fed frozen fish and eventually are actually taught to eat by the animal handlers. To do that job, the handlers need to be strong and quick to avoid being bitten.
No one is allowed to talk to the animals. They are not pets and we don’t want them bonding to humans. The exception is the “pups” that have to be bottle fed. They automatically imprint on their humans and therefore cannot be released in the wild. They are sent to zoos.
Me, looking into an operating room. Some of the hospital functions include thoracic surgery, gastrointestinal surgery, and orthopedic surgery as well as routine examinations and blood sampling for patient diagnosis.
Some of the techniques used include electroencephalography, positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.
It was on the way to the main cages that we noticed this sign. Things that make you go ‘hmmm’.
Isn’t this a great bird on a wire that I captured on the fence? I didn’t alter the image – the blue mirror was the only color in that area. It’s the sign of the crow… still following me wherever I go.
I thought this guy was flashing a tooth when we were leaving… but look – it’s the Bee’s Knees! (I am not sure what the purple mark means.)
To find out the number of animals check out the current patients page or call The Center’s main line at 415.289.7325 (SEAL).
Although a grant pays for a full time veterinarian, almost everything else is supported by volunteers and donations. The Marine Mammal Center’s new hospital is a “green” marvel in its use of recycled building materials, approach to conserving energy, and the way it maintains harmony between the existing natural landscape of the Marin Headlands and its patient’s needs.
I think it bears repeating that the Center is a hospital with the goal of releasing rehabilitated marine mammals back to the wild. Not all animals are visible from public viewing areas. Animals that are especially sensitive are placed outside of public viewing areas to limit the impact of human activity around the animals. Riding the seals are never allowed.
Golden Gate from the highway to Sausalito (from Spanish: sauzalito “small willow grove” + “place of abundance”)
We slipped into Sausalito for a few minutes. Prior to the building of The Golden Gate, Sausalito developed rapidly as a shipbuilding center in World War II, the city’s industrial character gave way in postwar years to a reputation as an artistic enclave.
And it was back home over the Golden Gate, now shrouded in fog. I have still to tell you about “the tunnel”
