Lab results testing for oil on two seals recently harvested near Gambell have come back negative. Coast Guard Petty Officer Frances Caselton says samples of the seals’ flippers and jaw skin were tested by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, but they say neither contain petroleum.
The seals were harvested by hunters on St. Lawrence Island, who believe the dark substance on the animals’ hides was oil. Gay Sheffield with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Marine Advisory Program also sent tissue samples to the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, which she says assisted with testing after oiled seals were harvested in 2012. Those results for the recent seals are still unknown.
Caselton says the Coast Guard did an over flight last week, but didn’t see any oil in the areas where the seals were harvested.
She also says there’s no conclusive report on the potential oil sighting in the water by Wales and Shishmaref. The Coast Guard interviewed the pilot who made the original report, and he said the substance didn’t seem to sheen, so it may not have been oil. Additional pilots who have flown through the area were interviewed—and they have not reported seeing anything unusual.
In order to conduct thorough testing of potentially oiled animals, Caselton says it’s best to have as much of the animal hide as possible. Sheffield is asking anyone who thinks they’ve seen oiled wildlife to take a picture and contact her immediately.
