Vancouver Aquarium welcomes new fur seal named Lola

A seal named Lola is the Vancouver Aquarium’s newest permanent resident, which it officially welcomed this week.

The male fur seal was rescued off the coast of Salt Spring Island in January 2021 after being found in poor condition. He was brought into the Vancouver Aquarium, where staff found he couldn’t see very well because he had cataracts in both eyes.

Staff conducted two surgeries to improve Lola’s vision, but ultimately, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans deemed Lola unreleasable because his vision was still too poor.

So Lola will continue staying at the Vancouver Aquarium, which is now his permanent home.

Vancouver Aquarium

“We are delighted to see how well Lola has been doing since he was rescued over a year ago and look forward to seeing his progress continue at the Aquarium,” Marine Mammal Rescue Centre manager Lindsaye Akhurst said in a news release.

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Lola has been spending time with five of the aquarium’s female fur seals. He currently weighs in at 21 kilograms, but when he’s fully grown he’ll be about five times larger than the female seals.

He eats about 2.5 kilograms of herring, capelin, and squid per day and has been learning tasks that will help with his daily care.

You can see Lola during your next visit to the aquarium.