Seal Spotted On Montauk Beach Sparks Concerns

MONTAUK, NY — A seal spotted on a Montauk beach sparked a sea of concern from the public about his well-being.

According to Lori Flynn of Montauk, her husband Jay was out with their dog around 1 p.m. on Friday and came upon the seal.

"To my husband Jay's untrained eyes it appeared injured, he thought it had a hurt flipper," she said.

The Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation was contacted, she said.

And on Saturday, Allison Chaillet DePerte of the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation responded to a request for comment from Patch: "The Riverhead Foundation Rescue team did respond to a small grey seal near S. Emerson Road in Montauk last night, and brought it to the facility for assessment. After a full physical exam is conducted, we will determine the proper course of action for this animal."

When he saw the seal, her husband's instinct was to see if help was needed, Flynn said.

"He left the seal as to not distress it by his presence," Flynn said. "After many hours, he went back to check and it had seemed to roll further from the water."

Some experts told the couple that the seal might be fine and just behaving normally, she said.

But whether or not it was premature to call for help, Flynn said it was important to call, to ensure the seal was safe.

"It is our humane duty to always report and help any stranded or injured animal. We live year round on these beaches, if this is a common occurrence, residents should be well educated and aware. We are not," she said. "All we could see is an animal in apparent distress, stranded, alone, how can you not use all available resources to help? I think it helps to educate either way."

Members of the Locals Only Facebook page also called on the Riverhead Foundation for help.

The public has come together in recent months to try and save a humpback whale stranded in Moriches Bay; the whale was euthanized, sparking collective grief and a call for change.

Patch photo and video courtesy of Lori Flynn.