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Seals, seabirds and injured, sick or orphaned turtles could have a second chance at a state-of-the-art rehabilitation center if the Oregon Coast Aquarium were successful with a fundraising campaign that it had just launched.
The Newport Aquarium currently uses several converted old buildings to diagnose and treat rescued marine creatures. But aquarium officials want to build a new rehab center for wild animals of greater capacity. The aquarium should expand gradually as funding becomes available, starting with an additional retention pond for sea otters, said Brittany Blades, assistant marine mammal curator.
"At the present time, there are not enough facilities, such as zoos and aquariums, to accommodate stranded puppies that can not be released back into the wild," he said. Blades in an interview next to the otters show.
Blades said that an enlarged facility might also one day be a valuable starting point if government agencies were again trying to reintroduce sea otters into Oregon's waters.
The marine wildlife rehabilitation center offered by the Oregon Coast Aquarium is endowed with a budget of $ 4.75 million. The design includes indoor and outdoor spaces for quarantine, critical care, surgery, observation and staff training.
The Newport Aquarium is one of only three facilities in the Pacific Northwest endowed with a federal marine mammal rehabilitation permit – and it's the only one in the world. ;Oregon. Other federally registered marine mammal centers in the region are PAWS Wildlife in Lynnwood, WA, and Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Friday Harbor, WA.
Harbor seals and California sea lions are the two species most often stranded and face considerable hardship during their first year of life, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Most of the time, government biologists tend to let nature take its course with these two species because their populations are plentiful. But the lack of response sometimes disturbs bathers who report sea lions or sick seals – or even worse, try to intervene.
"The rehabilitation of pinnipeds from growing populations is considered in some cases when there have been negative interactions or serious injuries caused by humans or their pets (eg, dog bites). , interactions with fisheries, entanglements of marine debris) ", a priority document shared Monday by public radio by NOAA read.
Rehabilitation authorizations for migratory seabirds and sea turtles are the responsibility of other agencies. The Seattle Aquarium is another place that takes care of sea turtles off the course.
According to the aquarium, strandings of marine animals are increasing due to climate change and global warming.
Last year, the coastal aquarium treated 176 wild birds of more than 50 species. Sally Compton, spokeswoman for the Aquarium, said the planned rehabilitation center would continue to deal with a mix of marine wildlife similar to that of today. but in greater numbers.
The Oregon Coastal Aquarium currently houses three sea otters and could accept one of them with the funds it needs to expand its retention area. The California sea otter population is listed on the federal government's list as threatened and extinct locally off the coast of Oregon.
The fundraising campaign for the construction of the sea otter retention area is conducted separately from the larger aquarium campaign. The aquarium plans to start work as soon as a goal of $ 50,000 to $ 60,000 has been achieved. [Copyright 2018 Northwest News Network]
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