By Rebecca Aldworth
Every one of the estimated 300,000 seals killed this spring on the ice floes in northeast Canada will be nameless, faceless animals—except, perhaps, for Artie.
Last year around this time, Artie, a hooded seal, was found in a marsh in Massachusetts. Emaciated and lethargic, the starving and ailing creature was near death. But some compassionate people at the New England Aquarium took the seal in, and over the next seven months, carefully nursed him back to health. His caregivers dubbed him Artie, after brewmaster Arthur Guinness, since the seal was rescued on St. Patrick's Day.
Artie proved to be a curious and charismatic seal, watching people with great interest as they tended to him. After Artie nearly doubled his intake weight and fully recovered, he was tagged with a satellite tracking device and released into local waters on October 6, 2004. Artie swam out to sea slowly, until finally, taking a last long look at his new friends, he disappeared from sight.
Had he stayed in local waters, Artie would have been safe; it is illegal in the United States to kill marine mammals. But following ancient patterns of migration, Artie obliviously swam directly into the most dangerous place on Earth for him—the waters off Canada's East Coast.
In late March, Artie's new locale will become the site of Canada's annual commercial seal hunt, the world's largest and most brutal slaughter of marine mammals. And while hooded seals are not the primary target of the hunt, many of them—just like Artie—are shot and killed in the course of the slaughter.
We don't know if Artie will survive the seal hunt. With some 300,000 other seals, this creature once cared for by human hands may soon be wiped out, just so his skin can be turned into a furcoat. Artie may lose his life so some sealer can pocket a few bucks for his pelt.
Through his satellite tracking device, the New England Aquarium will closely follow Artie's movements throughout the hunt. You can periodically check the aquarium's web site to see his progress, as well as see video clips of his care and release. The last thing any of us want to see, of course, is Artie's satellite tag come to a permanent rest on the radar screen.
But you don't have to sit idly by either, as hundreds of thousands of seals like Artie die. You can join our international efforts to end this senseless slaughter forever.
Rebecca Aldworth is Director of Canadian Wildlife Issues for The HSUS.
