Ten seals nursed by the Lithuanian Maritime Museum in Klaipėda have been released back into the Baltic Sea.
They were put on a boat and taken 10 kilometres off the coast where there are more fish and no nets, the museum said on Thursday.
“The seals have grown from 11-13 kilograms to 40-60 kilograms in three months, are healthy, strong and are now able to feed and live independently at sea,” the Maritime Museum said.
Nine seals remain at the Baltic Sea Animal Rehabilitation Centre and were brought back to the Museum in spring. Twenty-two seals have been treated by the Museum’s specialists this year, but unfortunately three have not survived.
Six of the nine seals will be released next month.
“Their weight is now approaching 40 kilograms and, if all goes well, by mid-July these seals will be swimming in the Baltic,” said Arūnas Grušas, head of the Marine Mammals and Birds Department.
The Baltic grey seal is a rare and endangered species listed in the Red Books of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden and Russia. These seals have been living in the Baltic Sea for 10,000 years.
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