Courtesy of New Haven Police Department

A gray seal found two weeks ago on New Haven’s Chapel Street has died of an intestinal illness, according to staff at the Mystic Aquarium.

On Feb. 16, New Haven Police Department officers recovered the weeks-old seal, who was since named Chappy, after the street on which he was stranded. The seal was transported to the aquarium, where it was treated for dehydration and malnourishment. On Feb. 25, the aquarium posted on its Facebook that Chappy had contracted pneumonia. The aquarium asked its followers to send “good vibes” for Chappy.

According to an Instagram post by the aquarium on Monday morning, Chappy began having “digestive difficulties” when his diet transitioned from nutrient formula to whole fish. A complete necropsy revealed that he died from mesenteric torsion, an intestinal abnormality that cut off blood supply to a large portion of his gastrointestinal tract. 

“The Mystic Aquarium staff are proud that they were able to give Chappy the best chance possible and are devastated by this outcome,” the aquarium wrote. “The reality of working with stranded animals can be tough sometimes, but Chappy was surrounded by love until the very end.”

Chappy’s story made headlines across the country, frequently earning jokes about the proximity of the site from which he was recovered to Wooster Square, a hotspot for New Haven’s famed clam pizza. The national bobblehead museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin decided to produce a bobblehead of the seal and donate 10 percent of its profits to the Mystic Aquarium.

The New Haven Police Department released a statement around 5 p.m. on Monday thanking the aquarium “for their efforts to help our little buddy.”

“We would like to thank everyone who reached out, it was amazing to see how many people this story touched,” the department wrote.

Officer Christian Bruckhart, the NHPD’s communications officer, told the News he had a chance to visit Chappy in the aquarium.

News of the seal’s death quickly reverberated around New Haven. During the points of privilege at Monday’s Board of Alders meeting, Ward 10 Alder Anna Festa acknowledged the seal’s brief but memorable impact on the Elm City. 

“As you all know, we lost our little Chappy the seal today. He became our little mascot. It was just a happy moment in time for all of us,” she said. 

Long Island soundkeeper Bill Lucey, a marine biologist with the nonprofit Save the Sound who is tasked with finding and fixing the estuary’s most pressing issues, told the News that Chappy’s death did not surprise him. Typically, he explained, when marine mammals venture onto land, and especially into urban environments like the one where Chappy was found, they are sick.

“When you see animals acting in that manner, they’re usually in distress,” Lucey said. “Mystic is a really skilled rehab facility, but things are very difficult to do sometimes, especially with something like that.”

Mystic Aquarium also wrote on Instagram that the necropsy revealed small pieces of plastic in Chappy’s stomach, though they determined that these were unrelated to his immediate cause of death.

Still, Lucey found this detail especially concerning. He said that Save the Sound has been researching “plastic interactions with wildlife” with the goal of holding plastic manufacturers liable “for some of the externalities that their plastic that’s coating our planet is causing.”

Until the early 19th century, the Fair Haven neighborhood was called Dragon after the seals, or sea-dragons, that would sun themselves on its shores.

Ethan Wolin contributed reporting.