Where Do Orphaned Marine Mammals Land Up After Storms? Photos Of Baby Elephant Seals At Marine Mammal Center

What happens when large storms hit the shore and huge waves sweep away the sea mammals away from their mothers? The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, California looks after those marine creatures.

The centers aims to advance global ocean conservation through marine mammal rescue and rehabilitation, scientific research, and education. The center has recently seen an increase in orphaned and injured elephant seal pups following heavy storm activity and rough surf, which could have swept the young seals away from their mothers. The center had 100 elephant seals in rehabilitation last year, whereas, this time, it has 113.

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“With the large storms, these big waves are washing them off their normal beaches, said Marine Mammal Center Director, Dr. Shawn Johnson. “So they’re ending up on public beaches. They need to be rescued and given the proper nutrition to get them back out into the wild as soon as possible," CBS reported.

The volunteers at the center are its source of help. The surge in rescued marine mammals is only increasing the need for helping hands. Anyone interested in volunteering to take a shift in the fish kitchen can sign up at the Center's website.

“We are feeding about 700 pounds of fish a day,” said Johnson.