Stories Of Shoebert The Seal Coming To Marblehead's Abbot Library

MARBLEHEAD, MA — Those who followed the adventures — or sought to catch a glimpse — of Shoebert the seal during his memorable week spent in Beverly's Shoe Pond this past fall can learn more about his adventures as part of the Abbot Public Library's "Underwater in Salem Sound" lecture series next month.

Ainsley Smith, Marine Mammal Stranding Coordinator for NOAA Fisheries, will be the guest speaker at the Feb. 15 series session that can be viewed in-person at the Marblehead library's temporary location at the Eveleth School and online via Zoom. Registration is required for both in-person and Zoom attendance.

Smith will share her first-hand recap of Shoebert's memorable stay in Beverly, his "escape" to the Beverly Police Station, his relocation back to the ocean, and perhaps even back to the North Shore.

She will also give an overview of the seals common to the North Shore and share how you can give a seal a helping hand if it gets stranded out of its element.

Smith, a North Shore resident, grew up in Western Mass., earned degrees from Ithaca College and Duke University, and now oversees stranding network partners from Maine through Virginia as they respond to distressed, injured or incapacitated seals, dolphins and whales.

The Salem Sound Coastwatch series includes discussions on environmental and aquatic life along the North Shore. There will be two additional lectures in its 11th year on March 15 and April 19. All lectures are free and open to the public.

For more information, visit the library website here, email noblenet.org or call 781-631-1481.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)