Wild Observations
Oh! You "Seal" That?
I wanted to check out some seals for myself. Upon researching locations where I may be able to find seals in the wild, I found three locations that were close enough for it to be possible for me to visit- the Marine Mammal Center, the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, and the Año Nuevo State Park. For reference, these locations are marked on the map on the right (if map appears to be very small on your screen, click on it to zoom in).
The Marine Mammal Center
I went to the Marine Mammal Center with my mom and my cousin in mid October. Throughout the guided tour, I kept hearing the barking of the sea lions, but not the seals. I was only able to spot two seals. The ones at the center were quite small. Seals are less active than sea lions. They just laid in their cages. The gallery on the left is from my visit.
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The Fitzgerald Marine Reserve
I went to the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve several times. I first went there in early June and saw a lot of seals on the beach. At first, I did not even realize they were seals or that they were alive. From afar, they looked like a bunch of rocks- their color and their inactivity made it difficult to recognize. It was not until I realized that the beach was closed off and there hung a sign that mentioned to not disturb the seals, that I realized the beach was full of live, wild seals! Upon realization that these were all seals, excitement sprout from within me! However, it soon died after watching them for several minutes, since they showed no movement.
I visited again in early October. There were fewer seals this time. And again, these seals showed no signs of being alive. They were just laying on the beach. I failed to take pictures when I went in June since I had no intentions of making a website on seals. However, I regret not doing so because there were a lot more seals laying on the beach at that time. The map on the bottom right is of the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve. I stood at the Sea Cove Stairs to observe the animals.
I then visited again in mid-Novemeber at the evening, it was low-tide, and I did not spot a single seal at the cove.
The Año Nuevo State Park
Though I had all the intentions of visiting the Año Nuevo State Park to check out the elephant seals, I ended up not being able to visit. Upon research, I learned that the animal does not arrive until nearer to winter time. As a result, I aimed to visit the park the week of the due date for the website. However, due to the poor air quality in California at the current time, I chose to not go. However, I would still be interested in visiting the park to check out some wild elephant seals in the future, my future observations just won't be up in time for when I submit my website for this class project.