Rescued seals back in the water

A distressed female harp seal found Wednesday at Jones Beach has been returned to the water, the head biologist of a Riverhead marine rescue group said Friday.

The seal was put into the ocean about 7:30 p.m. Thursday, said Robert DiGiovanni, senior biologist for the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research, which had collected the animal Thursday morning near the Field 6 concession stand.

DiGiovanni said that the harp seal and a second seal - also found beached Thursday, but near Hither Hills State Park in Montauk - were released off the Ponquogue Bridge in Shinnecock Bay.

"It looks like they're out there doing what they are supposed to do," DiGiovanni said Friday afternoon. The seals were assessed at the nonprofit's medical facility and tagged with tracking devices, he said.

Both appeared to be healthy when released.

DiGiovanni said the female seal found at Jones Beach was most likely distressed because many onlookers crept too closely to the animal as it rested on the beach.

Wildlife managers advise people to stay 50 yards from seals, which are protected under federal law. Repeated interactions with humans can exhaust them and leave them vulnerable to illness and predators.

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DiGiovanni said the Jones Beach seal was probably sunning itself.

A third seal found Thursday on Gilgo Beach was taken to the Riverhead medical facility, where it was being evaluated, DiGiovanni said. He was unsure when the gray seal might be returned to the ocean.

Also, a male baby gray seal found 13 days ago with its umbilical cord still attached was still being fed by tube, he said.

DiGiovanni said it was unclear when the pup would be returned to its natural habitat.