Spotted seals can come up for air

Spotted seals living in an open-air zoo can now come up for fresh air after ice floes blocking the sea surface thawed yesterday afternoon.

This was the first threat to deprive the seals of fresh air as they swam offshore during their four years of living in "Seals Bay" of Dongpaotai Park in Yantai, a coastal city in East China's Shandong province.

Almost all the ice "has thawed today," Li Gang, an employee of the park, said yesterday over the phone. "The seals can now take a deep breath."