Redcliffe Rest Stop For Fur Seal

Our foreshore presented a perfect place to pause and rest recently, for a juvenile Fur Seal found on the rocks near the Redcliffe Lagoon.

Layne Mathers was working at the lagoon at the time. I saw a lot of people gathered around so I came down to have a look, and there was a little fur seal coming out of the water; he climbed up and sat on the rock, and looked exhausted,� Layne said. He was there from around midday until 5pm and I just kept the crowd at bay. I'd finished work by then but I wasn't going home until I knew he was alright�.

The Long Nose (New Zealand) Fur Seal has been known to visit our area before, notably in 2015 when a seal spent several days in and around the waters at Scarborough. Both New Zealand and Australian fur seals reside in cooler waters, and they are very similar creatures.

Mathew Davis, a marine scientist and founder of Australian Coastal and Marine Ecology, an environmental consultancy based in Scarborough, was called to attend the incident. We were monitoring the animal and keeping in touch with the guys at RSPCA and the Department of Environment and Science. It's come in for a rest, quite exhausted; at the end of the day it just swam away.�

Just another day in Moreton Bay!