Buzz's Marine Life of Puget Sound: Jun 12, 2013

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Harbor Seal Pupping Season Underway

The Harbor Seal pups are born in Puget Sound mainly during the Summer months. The first new pups have shown up as of the second week in June. Seal Sitters responded to a report of a seal on the beach just north of Constellation Marine Reserve in West Seattle. A female adult seal was observed alive but died within about an hour of first observation. She had given birth about two days earlier. A necropsy determined that she had an infection in her uterus; the pup has not been found but a report of a mother seal and a small pup at Lincoln Park in West Seattle eariler may have been the dead female and her new pup, however there is no photo confirmation of the pair at Lincoln Park so only a verbal sighting report is available.
The images below are of the female seal that died just north of Constellation Marine Reserve boundary.
Sightings of Harbor Seals, adult or pups, and other marine mammals alive or dead on the beaches of West Seattle can be reported to Seal Sitters (Marine Mammal Strand Network) at 206-905-SEAL. There are Stranding Network members throughout the Puget Sound area, Washington, Oregon,
California and Alaska. For a list of all Stranding Network members, with contact numbers, of Puget Sound check: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/health/northwest/pugetsound_stranding_network.pdf

The pink paint was added after the seal had beached

Mid and High Intertidal Explorations

The largest crowds of people can be found on local Seattle area beaches during the best Summer low tides, which occur during the full and new moon phases in the daytime; weekends a especially busy. But one does not need an exceptionally low tide to find lots of critters at the beach. The mid and high tide elevations on many beaches in the area are rich in marine species.....and if you want the beach all to yourself this is a good time to explore. Close-up views of the small Oregon Pillbug and Rockweed Isopods reveals an amazing variety of color and patterns...true jewels of the high and mid intertidal zone. Bring your magnifying lens or a good macro lens for your camera to see the true beauty of the very small.

The images below were taken in the mid and high tide zones on Alki beach....Constellation Marine Reserve in West Seattle.