Pups Update : 1st June 2026 - Churro and Hot Cross Bun, the final two rescued seal pups for 2025/26 season, are now in the last stage of their rehabilitation and will soon be ready for release back into the wild.
To give them the best possible chance of survival, it is important that they do not become accustomed to human interaction. As part of this process, the animal care specialists team carefully manages feeding times, keeps direct contact to an absolute minimum, and only enters the enclosure when necessary for cleaning, health checks, treatment, or weighing.
The enclosure also includes private refuge areas where the pups can rest away from public view.
Thank you for helping us give these seals the best possible start back in the wild.
Release!
After a few months of rehabilitation the Cornish Seal Sanctuary are delighted to share that Hot Cross Bun has been released back into the wild alongside his pool mate, Churro, on the 10th of June 2026!
From arriving at the Sanctuary as a vulnerable pup entangled in fishing netting, to growing stronger every day, Hot Cross Bun and the team, have worked hard to reach this milestone. Watching pups like him return to the ocean is always a special moment for the team.
Their release also marks the end of another busy pup season at the Sanctuary. We would like to thank everyone who has supported our rescue, rehabilitation and release work over the past few months!
Good luck and safe travels to Hot Cross Bun and Churro, the last rescue pups of the 2025/26 season!
Many of the pups were first responded to by British Divers Marine Life Rescue´s dedicated network of volunteers, who give up their own time to answer callouts, assist with rescues, and provide vital care for the animals in the critical days before they arrive at the Cornish Seal Sanctuary. This collaboration between the two organisations ensures that more animals can be reached quickly and given the best possible chance of survival.Click here to read the Press Release.
Are you ready to do something unforgettable in 2026?
Join the Cornish Seal Sanctuary for Skydive for Seals and take on the ultimate challenge: a 15,000ft jump, 120mph freefall, and breath-taking views!
Every pound you raise will help support vital seal rescue, rehabilitation and the long term care of the resident animals at the Cornish Seal Sanctuary.
Banana (video below), one of the Sanctuary´s most recognisable residents, was rescued as a pup but cannot be released back into the wild due to a neurological condition that causes seizure-like episodes similar to epilepsy.
Like many of the resident seals cared for by the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, Banana will spend the rest of her life in specialist care, requiring ongoing medication, monitoring and dedicated support from the Sanctuary´s expert animal care team.
A little update on Pumpkin & Willow following their recent eye procedures...and the Team so happy to say they are both doing brilliantly!
It´s now been just over a month since Willow´s operation, and she is doing so well. She´s already back to her usual tricks and is training really well with the team. Amazingly, Willow was back eating fish just a day after surgery!
Whilst recovering in the nursery pool, Willow was very keen to be reunited with Pumpkin and the rest of her pool mates. Pumpkin and Jinx would often sit by the nursery barrier keeping her company while she recovered.
Now weighing bang on 100kg, Willow´s eyes are looking nice and healed. The team are still keeping an "eye" on her but everything is looking really positive for our gorgeous girl.
Pumpkin is also doing really well. Following his recent eye procedure to help combat the persistent eye problems he´s been experiencing over the last year, he recovered incredibly quickly and was back eating and swimming within days.
He´s currently sporting a lovely dark grey coat after his moult and is looking as handsome as ever! The team say he seems much more comfortable since the procedure, and he´s been in a very playful mood lately, especially during training sessions!
A massive thank you to @thedickvet* for their brilliant work and taking such good care of them, and thank you all for your continued support for Pumpkin & Willow.
*The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies is a world leader in veterinary education, research and clinical practice.
We hope you enjoy the selection of photos taken in June 2026, click here or on the photo of your choice below to see a larger version.
It was a lovely sunny Sunday morning for our World Oceans Day beach clean on the 14th of June 2026 along with Onebagbeachclean at Maenporth beach in Falmouth. Thanks to all our 35 wonderful volunteers for coming to help.
We can achieve so much when we all work together!
We collected 1.5kg recycling, 14.8kg rubbish and 9 bags of dog poo! One lovely volunteer cleared up a discarded dog poo! Well done to Sean for finding a piece of lego.
A big thank you to the @maenporthbeachcafé (Life´s a Beach Café) for their support. Click here to see a selection of photos.
Make your next visit extra sweet between May - September...Join the VIP Cream Tea & Guided Tour experience at the Cornish Seal Sanctuary. Start with a fascinating guided tour, where you´ll hear the stories of the resident animals, visit Cornwall´s oldest working Seal Hospital, and discover how we rescue, rehabilitate and release seal pups back to the wild.
Then unwind with a traditional Cornish cream tea, fresh scone, clotted cream, jam, and your choice of tea or coffee.
Afterwards, enjoy the rest of your visit at your leisure, from meeting the seals to soaking up views across the Helford River.
Every year, seals are injured by discarded flying rings and other plastic waste left behind on our beaches. These entanglements can cause devastating injuries, infections, and in some cases, can sadly be fatal.
Alicia Wiley has been speaking out about the growing issue and why urgent action is needed to help protect marine life around our coastline.
We´re asking our supporters to stand with us by signing the petition calling for change and helping spread awareness about the dangers these items pose to seals in the wild.
Every name adds weight to protecting marine wildlife from unnecessary injury and suffering...
Please click on this link! and share the petition and help keep the momentum going. Together, we can make beaches safer for seals. We have 62,170 signatures so far and on our way to 100,000, so pushing for real change and action.
We went to check on seals haul-outs in Cornwall this month - we hope you like our photos. Click here to see a selection of photos.
These photos were taken with Nikon Coolpix P1000 camera which contains a 3000mm zoom lens!
Each released seal pup is given a flipper tag with an unique ID number. This helps the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, the Seal Research Trust and other organisations to track and monitor where pups end up and how they are doing once they are back in the wild.
This month the following seals were spotted in the wild around south-west England:-
Photos Credit : Isles of Scilly Eastern Isles Endeavour Rib Service - Fool - 7th June 2026
By monitoring the behaviour of seals after released back into the wild, the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, Seal Research Trust and other organisations can use this information to define the best practice standards and policies that they can share with the international rescue community.
Each seal´s fur pattern is unique and enables the organisations to track them for life.
Seals face many challenges, yet we all depend on them to balance our marine ecosystem, which is essential to make the oxygen we breathe.
Seals are our globally rare wildlife tourist attraction, helping diversify coastal economic prosperity.
This news update has been put together by volunteers/supporters of the Cornish Seal Sanctuary.
