Seal pup towel plea by Tynemouth Blue Reef Aquarium

More than 2,000 seals have been born on the Farne Islands and many have been separated from their mothers

Tynemouth's Blue Reef Aquarium is appealing for old towels to care for sick and injured rescued seals.

Donations of towels are urgently needed to keep pups warm and nurse them back to full health.

Staff at the centre said recent bad weather has led to its centre being full since November with hundreds of extra pups.

More than 2,000 grey seals have been born on the Farne Islands, off the coast of Northumberland, this winter.

A spokesman for the centre said: "With the recent bad weather this has caused some of these seal pups to get separated from their mothers or become injured in the rough seas."

The Blue Reef team works alongside the RSPCA and the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR).