Gotcha!
After more than 10 weeks of being entangled the AMWRRO crew finally managed to locate and rescue this young adult Australian Seal Lion from certain death.
Hand injecting Max high up in rocks
Yesterday afternoon AMWRRO received information that this young male was only metres away from the shore line at a location that cannot be disclosed. After two hours he finally came ashore and the dedicated, highly trained AMWRRO crew jumped at the opportunity and was on site within the hour.
AMWRRO Crew move Max to dry ground weighing in at 173kg
Once on site, his initial location was accessible via a sandy beach, but due to fast rising tidal movements his rescue soon became a logistical and occupational minefield as it took over an hour to get the necessary clearance by the landowners that incorporated several meetings regarding OH&S before we were cleared to do our job.
Unfortunately in this time the tide has risen to a point where the rescue took place in knee deep water – making the rescue much more dangerous for our crew.
Once sedated by hand injection it took him 25 minutes to fall asleep before we could access him, load him onto a stretcher and start the 150m walk in knee deep water carrying his 173kg body to dry ground for additional treatment before loading him and starting the 1.5 hour road trip back to Torrens Island.
Entangled death sentence
With his entanglement finally removed; the full extent of his injuries were now known and treated accordingly whilst under a full general anaesthetic. Emergency bloods were taken and run in house and additional blood sent to the lab.
AMWRRO Crew work frantically to treat Max after arriving at AMWRRO – Torrens Island
All infected and necrotic tissue was removed from the wound site, cleaned and dressed; Max was now finally freed from a cruel and terribly painful death sentence.
The ultimate death sentence
Max is currently in dry dock and will remain there until medications start taking effect and the wound starts healing. Max will then be transferred to the main wetland rehabilitation facility where he will once again be able to swim freely and catch live fish whilst gaining the weight he had lost whilst entangled.
Treating the open wound
A timely reminder to everyone to keep their rubbish contained and disposed of accordingly, especially any object that can entangle around animals or be ingested (so basically everything!). Ropes, fishing line, crab pots and nets are of particular concern as these items entangle and kill more animals then ever reported.
Fortunately for Max he was found in time to be saved and flippers crossed he makes a full recovery and released in the coming months
The dedicated AMWRRO team that rescued Max!
Anyone sighting an entangled marine animal please contact AMWRRO directly as these reports often take several hours or even days to filter through other departments before AMWRRO is notified and anything can be done to help the said animal – which can have dire consequences if the animal is badly injured.
Special thanks to everyone who kept a close eye out for this young male (fishermen included) and to the very dedicated crew of AMWRRO volunteers that dropped everything to assist this amazing animal whenever asked.
