Heartbreaking picture of seal pup chewing on a Starbucks bottle shows the damaging reality of rubbish in our oceans
WILDLIFE campaigners have blasted litter louts after a seal pup was spotted chewing on a Starbucks bottle on a beach.
The grey seal youngster was snapped licking the dumped glass frappuccino bottle that was washed up at a UK nature reserve.
Dan Thurling, 40, who was out for a walk when he saw the seal, said: “I fear had the pup had more strength then it wouldn’t have ended well.
"I imagine the bottle is still there but hopefully, it hasn’t harmed these amazing animals.
“I just don’t understand why people have to litter. Do we not value this planet and all that we share with it?”
Chef Dan, 40, added: "Normally around there it's very well managed which is why I found it quite surprising there was a piece of rubbish. It probably washed up in the night tide."
The seal was spied at the Donna Nook nature reserve, near Mablethorpe, Lincolnshire, which is one of the UK's largest breeding colonies of grey seals.
Local wildlife experts said they were regularly being forced to clear litter from the reserve.
A spokeswoman for the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust said: “Unfortunately, human activity does have an impact on the grey seals here at Donna Nook National Nature Reserve.
“We regularly clear litter like this that comes in on the tide, and have had cases of discarded fishing ropes and frisbees getting caught around seals necks.
“We’re grateful to visitors to the nature reserve who take their litter home and report any sightings of wildlife in distress to our volunteer wardens.”
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A spokesman for oceans charity, Oceana said: “The photograph demonstrates the more visible aspects of rubbish in our oceans, however, what is not visible is equally, if not more worrying.
“Every minute the equivalent of a lorry-full of plastic litter enters the ocean.
“Once plastic enters the sea it does not go away, it only breaks down into smaller pieces that disturb the marine ecosystem and enter the food web.
“We are only now beginning to understand that everything we do on land ends up in the sea, and from there, it comes back to us eventually.
Starbucks said it was “deeply saddened” by the image and was speaking to the trust with the aim of “tackling some of the waste management issues at the reserve”.
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