"As a member of the endangered western population of Steller sea lions, Westley’s successful rehabilitation and release is an important win for conservation,” says Dr. Emily Whitmer, Clinical Veterinarian at the Center. “Seeing him return to Alaska healthy and thriving is incredibly rewarding for our team and partners involved in this momentous effort."

Before Westley was transported back to Alaska for his release, our veterinary experts performed a final health check at the Center and fitted him with two satellite tracking tags and other identifiers to monitor him in the ocean after release. By tracking Westley’s movements, we can learn more about his population as a whole and how animals use their ocean environment to help inform critical efforts to protect them.

In coordination with our partners, Westley was flown from Oakland, California, to Anchorage, Alaska, with two of the Center’s registered veterinary technicians accompanying the flight.

Seeing him return to Alaska healthy and thriving is incredibly rewarding for our team and partners involved in this momentous effort. - Dr. Emily Whitmer

After arriving in Anchorage early in the morning by plane, Westley was carefully transferred into a large box truck for the 130 mile journey south to Seward, home of the Alaska SeaLife Center. Once there, a forklift was used to safely transfer the large sea lion onto a landing craft vessel in the Seward harbor.

For the final stage of his remarkable trip, staff from The Marine Mammal Center, the Alaska SeaLife Center, and NOAA Fisheries escorted Westley to a nearby Steller sea lion haul-out site.

The area is home to a rich marine ecosystem, where towering cliffs with nesting seabirds rise above the turquoise waters of the Gulf of Alaska. Steller sea lions, seabirds and even whales are regularly spotted there. Alaska SeaLife Center scientist Dr. John Maniscalco, who has studied this endangered population of Steller sea lions for more than 25 years, felt the location would be a fitting place for Westley's return to the wild.

“This haul out site was chosen for the release because it's a known Steller sea lion haul out site with close proximity to Seward. This gives us our best chance to see him again and check on how he is doing," said Maniscalco.

When the vessel reached the release site, staff members from The Marine Mammal Center who had cared for Westley for months opened the transport unit doors. After several seconds, Westley dove into the water. The team watched as he swam past the boat one final time before approaching the haulout area, where several other Steller sea lions were gathered. They continued observing for an extended period and saw Westley interacting with other sea lions in the water near the haulout.

Westley was seen the very next day by a local tour vessel captain who noticed he was all cozied up with other sea lions on the haul out and resting peacefully. It makes us all feel good to save a life, especially of an endangered species. - Dr. John Maniscalco.