Heart-breaking photo of seal being strangled by fishing nets. Geoff Smiith
A collection of plastic and waste which have injured multiple seals since 2008
A grey seal rescued on the North Sea coast has become the 50th to be treated by a wildlife centre for injuries caused by discarded man-made rubbish.
The animal, like many others was found with an infected wound caused by a fishing net, the rubbish, often plastic, becomes wrapped around their necks which causes the seals a lot of pain and distress. They are weighed down by this huge mass of netting, which must make it hard for them to swim, and then the net starts to cut and embed into their neck.
The RSPCA centre in Norfolk said 2019 could be a record year for seal rescues "for all the wrong reasons."
"The injuries are horrendous, sometimes inches deep, and all the while the seal is becoming weaker and weaker and cannot feed so their suffering continues and they slowly starve to death. It is just horrific."
