A Steller sea lion that had a thick piece of braided plastic cutting deeply into its neck has been saved by the Vancouver Aquarium's Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. The aquarium says the team that saved the female sea lion on Saturday also tried to help a younger animal entangled in a plastic packing strap, but the animal was able to bite out a sedative-carrying dart and bolted into the ocean. The rescued female was full grown and estimated to weigh about 260 kilograms. In Canada, the aquarium says Steller sea lions are a species of special concern, and some populations, in parts of Alaska, are endangered. Dr. Martin Haulena, the aquarium's head veterinarian, said the rope was cutting "quite deeply" into the rescued seal lion and eventually she would have died.

Source: CBC News March 21, 2018 00:56 UTC