This is the heartwarming return of four sea lions and a sea elephant, rescued in recent weeks from freshwaters in the towns of Gualeguaychú in Argentina on July 26, and through the coordination of various institutions and the accompaniment of the National Environment portfolio, were returned to their habitat.

"We came to accompany the task of the inspectors and the Environmental Control brigade of the Ministry, who carry out an exemplary task taking care of the environment, protecting the fauna and controlling contaminating activities throughout the country," stressed the Minister of Environment.

The first of the sea lions to appear was spotted by local residents on a road by the Gualeguaychú river, in the town of the same name in the province of Entre Ríos. Days later, Ambiente participated in a new rescue operation for another specimen that was circulating in a private neighborhood located on the banks of the Luján River in the Buenos Aires municipality of Escobar. The other two sea lions and the elephant seal were found in the following days in the Paraná delta area of ​​the Tigre district, province of Buenos Aires.

The Civil Defense of Escobar and Tigre, the Tigre Operations Center (COT) and the Félix de Azara and Temaikèn foundations participated in the relief and assistance of the different animals, in the rescue center the first veterinary controls were carried out. Once stabilized, a specialized team of inspectors from the national Ministry of Environment transferred the specimens to the Mundo Marino Foundation, where they remained until the present reintegration into the sea.

The five animals had entered the delta of the Paraná River. It is estimated that the reasons that led marine mammals to lose their habitat could be related to climatic events such as storms or floods or extraordinary downspouts, or due to the low supply of food in salty waters that ended up moving them away from their reference routes.