Adorable seal orphans released into North Sea [Photos]

A harbor seal named Lisa peeks out of her wicker transport basket on Oct. 4 prior to being released onto a beach on Germany's Juist Island in the North Sea.

Lisa and three other orphaned seals are returning to the wild after being raised at a seal research station in the coastal mainland town of Norddeich.

A group of young harbor seals are released onto Juist Island by Lene Kemper, Tim Fetting and Peter Lienau, who are part of the staff at the Nordeich Seal Station.

Between 50 and 100 seals are raised or rehabilitated at the Norddeich station every year. When the seals are ready to be released, the staff transports them to Juist Island, which is a popular spot for wild seals.

A pair of harbor seals wade in the surf on a beach on the island of Juist, their first independent foray.