Harp seal found in Weymouth marsh

WEYMOUTH, Mass. -- A large seal stranded itself in a Weymouth marsh on Thursday afternoon.

Workers from the New England Aquarium were called in to save the day, but they will have to wait to save the seal, as the tide came back up and the animal moved out.

The 200-pound seal was seen swimming around the marsh on Thursday afternoon. It was trapped in the marsh when the tide receded.

Tony LaCasse from the New England Aquarium said harp seals are not common visitors to New England in the wintertime.

“Adult harp seals are unusual visitors to New England in the wintertime, but not unheard of. They’re very distinctive looking. Most seals here in New England have grayish or brown coats. These guys have a really off-white coat with a large brown triangular patch on them. SO they’re really visible and they stand out,” LaCasse said.

Authorities from the aquarium are familiar with the creature, saying it was tagged in Maine back in February. There was reportedly a sighting of the same seal earlier this week in Revere.

The animal is reportedly not in good shape. By the time crews got a large enough kennel out into the marsh to rescue the seal, the tide had come back up it had swam out of the marsh.

Aquarium authorities are asking people on the South Shore to keep a lookout for the distressed seal.

The animal most likely came from the Maritime Provinces of Canada. Officials are hoping they will have another sighting somewhere along the South Shore.

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