Volunteers find more than trash at the beach!

The girls who discovered the seal pup while cleaning Ortley Beach.

The seal pup, stranded under a condo.

Cara with 4-H volunteers.

Girl Scouts working hard!

Volunteers at the Ortley Beach Sweeps found more than just trash on Saturday...they found a stranded seal pup! The girls to find the pup were both Girl Scouts and members of the 4-H Club "Critter Craze". They contacted the Beach Sweep Captain, Cara Muscio and a police officer that was on the Beach.

Representatives from Island Beach State Park and the Marine Mammal Stranding Center were contacted. The Stranding Center reported that later in the day the seal returned to the water on its own and swam off.

Thirty volunteers came out for the Ortley Sweep, and got educational information on pollution as well as picking up trash and recording data for Clean Ocean Action. The volunteers were from Girl Scout Troops 320, 297, and 117, 4-H Clubs "Critter Craze" and "Silver Stirrups", and Monsignor Donovan High School, as well as residents from Ortley and Manchester Township.

The Beach Sweeps are a Clean Ocean Action Program. For more information please visit: cleanoceanaction.org.