Officials issue warning after making heartbreaking discovery inside beloved seal pup's stomach: 'Highlighting the threat'

A baby gray seal who captured hearts around the country after being rescued in New Haven, Connecticut, has sadly died, according to his care team at Mystic Aquarium.

What's happening?

On Feb. 16, the New Haven Police Department rescued a dehydrated and malnourished seal pup and transferred him to Mystic Aquarium's animal rescue clinic for rehabilitation.

Chappy, the seal pup that was rescued last week from the city streets of New Haven has started eating fish for the first time! This is a great step in his rehab as he continues to put on weight. pic.twitter.com/h7oYeBzr6k
— Mystic Aquarium (@mysticaquarium) February 24, 2025

The pup — affectionately named Chappy after being discovered wandering near a pizzeria-heavy part of Chapel Street, per NPR — initially showed signs of recovery, with Mystic Aquarium sharing footage of Chappy chowing down on fish for the first time.

Sadly, Chappy's condition began to deteriorate. On March 3, Mystic Aquarium shared the heartbreaking news, reporting that his "gastrointestinal issues were too severe to treat."

The team revealed his cause of death was "consistent with mesenteric torsion" — a condition in which his intestines were twisted around a mesentery membrane, "cutting off blood supply to a large portion of the gastrointestinal tract." The necropsy also found plastic in his stomach, unrelated to the immediate cause of death.

Why is this important?

Even though Chappy's death wasn't directly linked to the plastic, Mystic Aquarium suggested that things might have been different for another pup, "highlighting the threat that marine debris, especially plastics, poses to marine animals."

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Toy rings, ghost fishing gear, and shopping bags are among the types of plastic litter endangering marine animals like seals, which can become entrapped in the waste or mistake it for food and starve from the inside out.

According to Earth.org, around 100,000 marine animals die from plastic ingestion or entanglement each year, along with an estimated one million seabirds.

However, it speculates the toll may be much higher and explains that plastic waste appears to be negatively impacting human health as well. One study from the University of Newcastle estimates that people are eating "the equivalent weight of a credit card" of plastic each week.

What can be done about this?

Despite the upsetting ending to Chappy's story, Mystic Aquarium assured the public that the seal pup "was surrounded by love until the very end."

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"The Mystic Aquarium staff are proud that they were able to give Chappy the best chance possible and are devastated by this outcome. The reality of working with stranded animals can be tough sometimes," the team wrote. "Thank you to everyone who has reached out with words of encouragement and support. It means so much to our team."

If you want to support animal rescue and recovery efforts, donating to organizations doing the work in the field is one way to assist.

You can also contribute to a safer and healthier future for yourself, your loved ones, and creatures like Chappy by avoiding single-use plastics as much as possible, such as by switching to a reusable water bottle or durable cloth grocery bags.