The Chief reports that a resident of Squamish, British Columbia, stumbled across an unusual sight while bird watching on Sunday: a ribbon seal.
This unlikely visitor had been spotted in Marysville, Wash., in January, and was tagged by the Department of Fisheries in Steveston when it crossed the Canadian border. Ribbon seals are native to the Bering Sea, more than 1,400 miles away. The last time a ribbon seal was found south of Alaska was the 1960s, Vancouver Aquarium veterinarian Martin Haulena told The Chief.
Some researchers think the appearance of the ribbon seal is linked with a mysterious disease that is plaguing seals and polar bears in the Arctic. The ribbon seal has "suspicious" symptoms that match those of the disease, which causes skin ulcers that appear on the animal's hind flippers or face. Some animals have difficulty breathing, and some necropsies have revealed fluid in the lungs, abnormal brain growths or white spots on the liver.
Scientists are awaiting biopsy results to see if the visiting seal is inflicted with the disease. If so, the seal may play a role in unraveling the mystery behind it. Haulena told The Chief that the seal "presents an incredible opportunity" to track a seal that may be infected with the disease, which is proving to be one of the biggest obstacles scientists face as they attempt to unravel the mystery illness.
Read more, here.
Check out the ribbon seal basking in the sun in B.C., below.