Elephant Seal

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There was an account of a Elephant Seal located on the shore of San Juan Island. Being conservative and not wanting to bother it.  I took a side route to the area that would give me a birds eye view.  I had a spotting scope so I knew I would get a great view from afar.  It is best not to approach marine mammals on the beach.  They are very large, can be unpredictable, and could be under considerable stress.  It is best to step away and if you have you dog with you, put on a leash right away. In San Juan County you can report these animals  to the Marin Mammal Stranding Network.  Remember these are wild animals that usually do not have close contact or interaction with humans.  Therefore they can react in a manner which could lead to their injury or yours.  It is best to view them from a very safe distance with optics.  I have opted to leave the location of this seal out of my post to hopefully not encourage people to visit.  If you happen to come along a beach with signs posting that there is a marine mammal hauled out on the beach, the best thing to do it select another beach location.

Here are the photos I took.  Mind you these images are taken with a point and shot digital through a spotting scope.  So they are not the best.

Here I am setting up the scope.  Look how nice the sun looks.

Ahh.  Taking a bit of a rest.

There were some people approaching the beach.  Nervous behavior ensued and the people got way to close and should have been more respectful.

Close up of forward flipper.

Close up of the hind flippers.

Just doing the best it can to blend in.

After the I had my time viewing the Seal I headed off in a new direction to check on the Red Tailed Haws.  I found the Rufous Morph thanks to a large juvenile Bald Eagle.  The Eagle landed in a tree way off in the distance.  When I got the scope out and was scanning to locate the Eagle I found the Red Tail.  I took a few photos and they are not that great.  But you can see the nice rusty colors on the chest.  These images were taken via the scope from hundreds of yards away.





Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed seeing the Ele Seal...  I sure had a great time seeing it today.

Comments

Penny said…
Good shots of the ele seal. I feel like I can see it breath when I click on the full body photo. :P
February 19, 2009 at 2:54 PM
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