A young kekeno/NZ fur seal found its way onto a gas platform offshore from Taranaki Photo: Supplied
A Department of Conservation animal behaviour expert says the appearance of stowaway seal at an offshore gas platform tops her list of bizarre places where the inquisitive mammals have turned up.
The kekeno/New Zealand fur seal smuggled its way into supply basket being delivered to the Maui A platform off the coast of Taranaki and was lifted 40 metres above the sea before it was discovered.
Marine technical advisor Dr Jody Weir said the most unusual seal appearance she'd previously had a more domestic setting.
"Before this it had been a young seal that had got in through a cat door and ended up on somebody's couch. And they came home and the seal was just sleeping on their couch. So that that was pretty cute. But I think this might, you know, this might beat the that record."
When staff on the OMV platform discovered the seal they quickly called the Department of Conservation hotline (DOCHOT), and shepherded the seal into the tearoom out of harms way.
DOC call centre worker Hohepa Katipa-Nepia took the call.
He said it was one of the stranger enquiries he had dealt with.
"I got to work finding a DOC ranger to give advice on how to handle the situation," he said. "In the meantime, a worker from the platform stayed on the line, explained what they were doing, and gave details of their plan to return to the seal to the sea."
That plan was simply to pop the seal into a crate and lower it to sea level, allowing the young animal to swim off.
"Once we tracked down a ranger to give the plan the okay, it all went off without a hitch."
Weir said when Katipa-Nepia explained the situation to her she couldn't suppress a smile.
"When it was described to me it was actually on this oil platform 40 metres above the sea I had a big smile on my face."
She said the OMV staff handled the situation perfectly.
"It was wonderful to hear that the men that were involved were quite keen on doing the right thing and making sure that the little seal was well taken care of.
"So they basically explained the situation at hand and they had a really good plan of how to get it back down to sea gently by getting it back into a little crate and lowering it down to water level and then once the water got over the lip of the crate, the animal swam out okay.
"So yeah it was really a good news story for all involved."
The fur seal gets safely lowered in a crate 40 metres to the sea. Photo: Supplied
Weir said although young the seal was capable of looking after itself out at sea.
"So in terms of its age, it would have been a pup that was born last year. So about a year ago. And so this is the time that they should be weaned and they should be off adventuring on their own.
"And so fur seals are quite capable of spending long, long stretches at sea finding food. They can rest at sea. And, so yeah, I was comfortable that little seal would continue its adventures from where it was."
Weir said it was probable the seal crawled into the supply basket while it was in port.
OMV general manager New Zealand Kevin Goulet said the stowaway was a bit of a shock.
"The team were quite surprised by the visitor, and we were glad the DOC team were readily available to support and ensure the seal was returned safely to its home.
"Safety is the heart of our business, ensuring everyone gets home safely to their loved ones each day is the priority - and this seal was no exception."
Meanwhile, Hohepa said it was a great result all round.
"We get quite a few calls about seals in strange places. When it's on a road we tell people to call 111 because it's a driver safety issue. Police are best placed to deal with those before anyone gets hurt.
"In this case it was a wildlife emergency, so they did the right thing calling DOCHOT. Together we managed to see another wee seal happily returned to the sea."
DOC said with fur seal and sea lion numbers gradually increasing around New Zealand, it was increasingly likely people would encounter them in coastal areas, and even some distance inland.
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