This mural of a Pacific common seal greets you at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska. Built in 1998 and funded largely by the Exxon Valdez oil spill settlement, this non-profit aquarium not only delights visitors with its sea life exhibits but it also conducts marine research, education and rehabilitation projects. Several stranded and injured seals are being nursed back to health before being released back into the wild.
