Seal days

The political distraction of seismic testing takes me away from my main interest in being here, the elephant seals. These youngsters show a nice comparison of proboscis development: The one at center left, looking to the right, is just beginning to grow one, about five years old. He looks at one with a bigger nose, probably a year older. Closer, the large seal facing left, is probably a seven-year-old.

The young of the year, the pups that were born last January and February, are returning from their first migration. This might be one of them. About half a dozen small animals were on the beach today.

Overall, the beach has plenty of room for the number of seals. This is the low point for the population, this transition from adult males molting to the juvenile haul-out. I'll post pictures of the same scene in future weeks to show the increasing crowd arriving on the beach.