Achi news desk-
Despite the efforts of officers and volunteers, Emerson the elephant seal loves his adoring public too much to stay away.
His most recent journey involved swimming hundreds of kilometers in just five days to land back on Victoria’s beaches.
“(It’s) an animal we know well,” Paul Cottrell with the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans told Global News. “We even know he was born in the United States, just over the border in Deception Pass Park. And his mother gave birth right in this park in the end.”
Cottrell said after three or four weeks, the weaning period was over, and his mother took him away.
“So volunteers took care of this young dog for quite a while,” he said. “And Emerson has grown in contact with people. And now two years later, he weighs over 500 pounds and has taken a liking to Victoria.”
Cottrell said they first moved it away from people in 2023 but it returned within a few days. They moved it again but it came back so Cottrell said they let it fly at Oak Bay in June.
“And then it appeared in Victoria Harbor last September as well,” he said. “And it was in a real populated area, just like Oak Bay. He was crossing the road in the car park. And then last September, it was actually Songhees Walkway, which is right in the inner harbor in Victoria. “
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Cottrell said Emerson was behaving but attracting a lot of attention and the decision was made to move him again.
Officials and volunteers decided to move it again to Nootka Sound. But again, he appeared back in Victoria.
So another trip moved him to Barkley Sound, just south of Ucluelet, hundreds of kilometers away.
“And he came back within four or five days, which is amazing,” Cottrell said.
Now volunteers monitor Emerson around the clock and caution tape has been installed to keep the public out.
It will continue to shed, which means it will shed its skin.
“He’s really been a thorn in our side, and it’s very similar to Neil the seals’ situation in Australia,” said Cottrell. “And we joke that these two elephant seals are competing for media elephant seal of the year, and we hope Emerson doesn’t win.”
Cottrell said that although many people like to go see Emerson, he is a large animal and has crossed roads in the past and been placed in parking lots.
“Dogs have come up to Emerson, and unfortunately we’ve had people come close and touch him,” he added. “It’s a wild animal and it can bite. It’s quite wise, but of course, it’s also unpredictable.”
But if Emerson can’t behave, or the public can’t, Cottrell said they will move him a fifth time.
He believes Emerson will come back every year but when he weighs over 1,000 pounds that’s going to be a challenge.
“We hope we’re doing our best to break this bond of Emerson with people,” Cottrell said. “But that’s difficult. And I think as he gets older, hopefully that happens.”
Cottrell said many have a soft spot for Emerson but are trying to do what’s best for the animal so it can have a long, healthy life.
“He’s a real rascal,” she said. “And, you know, we love it, but we also hate it because it keeps coming back.”
& copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
