Dead harp seal found on E. Patchogue beach

A dead harp seal was found Wednesday morning on the beach off Durkee Lane in East Patchogue.

It was the sixth adult harp seal found dead so far this year on the South Shore, said Kim Durham, rescue project coordinator for the Riverhead Foundation.

"There were no obvious signs of distress," she said. "It was probably a young adult, not an older animal. It was on the thin side, with a pronounced neck and pelvic area."

She said only one dead adult harp seal was found during the same period last year, but the foundation only counts bodies that it takes in for examination, or whose death is confirmed by a photograph.

The foundation has no way to estimate how many seals may have died and washed away, she said.

She said reports of seals in distress were up sharply this year, with 16 reports to the foundation's hotline during the first three months, up from five reports during the same period last year.

Some swim away before potential rescuers arrive, she said, and some of the distressed seals are tagged with radar and released after being examined.

The harp seal found at Jones Beach two weeks was released, Durham said, "and he made a beeline offshore. He's out by the Hudson Canyon," about 100 miles away.