Tag Archives: Elephant Seal

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It's not unheard of to have an Elephant Seal here, but it doesn't happen too often. And when one appears, it's always on the beach, the sand. But not this big fellow. Traci Segelstrom wrote, “Here’s ‘Gus’ the Elephant Seal at Anchor Bay Campground.  He has completely stolen my heart. Who even knew Elephant Seals had eyebrows?!”

Paula Stillman also photographed him. She wrote, “This Elephant Seal picked campsite 33 to chill and relax for awhile. Apparently he’s a regular around here.”

Last week Mark Vanderwoude also found the big Elephant Seal in residence. He wrote this fun story.

“I was at the Anchor Bay Campground this morning and it appears that Mr. Elephant Seal has commandeered Spaces 32 and 33 without a reservation, and has no intention of paying. He isn't very friendly and the staff has no intention of inviting him to leave any time soon. Seeing is believing when campers with reservations are told of his disregard for their reservations, they now understand why ... he's huge!”

Mark also pointed out the many scars on this Elephant Seal’s back.

While resting on the beach, or favored campsite, Elephant Seals fast, living off their blubber. Dogs will need to be kept on leashes while this big fellow is in residence.

Thanks to Traci, Paula and Mark for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

A wait-five-minutes kind of day. Showers, sunshine, downpours, wind, roiling clouds - the Mendonoma Coast has a little bit of it all today. Nearly two inches of rain from the storms.

 

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Ron LeValley spotted what he believes was a young Elephant Seal molting.

Ron reports that the seal left after three days on the beach.

Here's a male Elephant Seal - notice the big proboscis [snout]! - seen some years ago north of Anchor Bay. Frank Jackson got this photo. I hope he used his long lens, as it isn't a good idea to get close to one of these big guys. They can move surprisingly fast when they want to!

Thanks to Ron and Frank for allowing me to share their photos with you here. To see much more of Ron's nature photography, here is the link to his website: http://levalleyphoto.com/home/

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A very large Elephant Seal occupied the south end of Cook's Beach for some days in December. Rick and I visited the beach and watched from a safe distance as he threw sand over his back.  Paula Ray Power photographed him and I have to wonder at the fellow in the photo. He's too close for comfort. Elephant Seals can move faster on sand than most humans.

Paula took this photo from the overlook. It's interesting to see the tracks made by the big fellow. Males should be headed south to Ano Nuevo State Reserve where mating has begun. Perhaps this Elephant Seal decided to forgo  all that and take a vacation on the Mendonoma Coast.

I thank Paula for allowing me to share her photo with you here. To see an aerial photo of this beautiful pocket beach, here's the link: http://www.mendonomasightings.com/2012/05/24/an-aerial-view-of-cooks-beach-as-photographed-by-craig-tooley/