Karen Helms | Northcoast Marine Mammal Center

“New” Kennels Donated by Miranda’s Rescue

Posted on February 18, 2015 by Karen Helms

Miranda's Rescue for Large and Small animals graciously donated to the NMMC this past week 8 wonderful kennels! They range in size from 39 pound to 18 pound kennels and are perfect for helping us to provide shelter for our pinnipeds in rehabilitation here at the NMMC or to take with us on beach rescues. This donation is particularly timely as we had lost several of our best plastic kennels while t...
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Northern Elephant Seal beaches near Samoa

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Karen Helms

Thanks to BM1 Jaime and the USCG men and women stationed at Humboldt Station for reporting a potentially stranded adult Northern Elephant Seal on the Samoa Spit this morning. See the attached photos to see this rare individual on our local beach! It is rare to see a Northern Elephant Seal in this part of Northern California because there are so few rookeries and the adults usually travel only t...
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Compound Maintenance Starts!

Posted on February 14, 2015 by Karen Helms

With the rain letting up the last few days we have started into doing serious compound maintenance. After a couple days of the sun drying out weeks of rain it was finally time to start preparing and patching the compounds concrete structures. Last years Northern Elephant Seal Weaner stranding event, in which 29 NESW's were residents at the NMMC, really broke up the compound! Literally. The mass of...
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Huey — CSL Restrand

Posted on February 14, 2015February 18, 2015 by Karen Helms

Huey, a one and a half year old CSL, was brought in from Humboldt county last week. He was underweight and had restranded. All NOAA Stranding Network pinnipeds who are released receive a small "rototag" in one flipper. Like an earlobe, this placement does not injure an animal, but allow animal "rehab" volunteers like us at the Northcoast Marine Mammal Center to recognize an animal who hasn't fully...
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Making the Transfers at Orick — Stranding Coordinator meets with NMMC Hospital Director

Posted on February 9, 2015February 9, 2015 by Karen Helms

Lynda Stockton, the NMMC's long serving Stranding Coordinator has a tough job. Whenever anyone in the two counties of Del Norte and Humboldt call in a potentially injured pinniped it is Lynda who takes in all the information and alerts all NMMC volunteers. She coordinates the response effort and more often than not ends up driving to meet Del Norte volunteers for a 'transfer' at the ...
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Beaver to HWCC

Posted on February 8, 2015February 9, 2015 by Karen Helms

During our annual volunteer training session Hospital Director Janet Dickey received a call from our sister animal-care organization in Humboldt county, Humboldt Wildlife Care Center. HWCC had received a call of a 'downed' beaver on Kellog Road North of Crescent City. Several volunteers scrambled out to talk with the reporting party, collect the bedraggled beaver, and arrange transport back to HWC...
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CSL’s — Hank & Chilly

Posted on February 8, 2015February 27, 2015 by Karen Helms

Two California Sea Lion pups were rescued earlier this weekend. One CSL pup, Chili, showed an orange tag indicating that he'd been previously rehabilitated and released. This is the second trip for him to a Stranding Network center, albeit hundreds of miles North of where he was initially released. This is a critical time for him for two reasons; 1) He was not succ...
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Rescue Truck rehabilitated by Mr. Jeff Van Pelt’s Del Norte High School Autoshop Class

Posted on February 3, 2015February 19, 2015 by Karen Helms

Our faithfull NMMC Rescue Truck, an early 2000 vintage 4WD Dodge Ram, developed problems with its automatic transmission lines late last year. Luckily noone was injured during the rescues and driving that took place before getting the truck into Dr. Dodge, aka Mr. Jeff Van Pelt, and his highly motivated advanced autoshop class at Del Norte High School. The truck apparently was suffering from expos...
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Wags and Menace Foundation leads to National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Grant Award!

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Karen Helms

The Wags and Menace Foundation's kind support during the mass Northern Elephant Seal Weaner stranding event of 2014 (29 weaners responded to!) led directly to the NMMC applying for and getting notification today of our approval for a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation emergency funding grant! Since Wags and Menace, led by Director Cindy Lee, allowed us to literally put tons of fish into happ...
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CSL Pup “Sailor”

Posted on February 1, 2015February 8, 2015 by Karen Helms

Rescued from Trinidad State Beach and transferred to the NMMC on 30 Jan 15. Sailor, a female CSL pup, was emaciated. Initially given electrolytes she is now "free-feeding" and eating fish on her own!
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