Pups wean, their first steps to independence

 They prepare for their first migration

Born in just the past two months, elephant seal pups at Piedras Blancas are getting ready to set out on their first migration. They are ready to launch.

Fat and sleepy

Weanling pups are easy to recognize. They are fat, even roly-poly. They were born all black, but now are countershaded, light on the belly and dark on the back. They will have that color pattern for the rest of their lives.

 

Weaning is a major transition in their lives. They go from gaining weight fast, from 75 pounds at birth to over 200 pounds in a month, to no food at all. Long fasts, periods of not eating, are a feature of elephant seal life. This is their first fast. They need their blubber to get them through to the next stage, migration.

Adult seals breeding drama

Pups congregate in groups, called pods, on the beach. They stay out of the way of the adults, who are still in the drama of breeding. Bulls trumpet and fight, females bawl. Weanlings stay out of the way and sleep.

 

As the mothers come to the end of lactation, they are at their thinnest. Their blubber has been metabolized into milk, feeding those chubby weanlings. Neither they nor the bulls have had anything to eat since they arrived on the beach.

 

Females come into estrus as they wean their pups. They are then ready to mate with the bulls. That’s when the bulls get competitive. Earlier battles were over territory. Now, they battle over breeding. 

Look for bulls raising their heads to stare at each other. One or the other will make a move, and one may back off from a fight. It’s called dominance interaction, displacement. From the viewing area, visitors can see which bull is dominant. 

If neither backs down, they’ll battle. The loser may leave the beach entirely, finding another beach to recover. Deaths are rare. Both live to fight, and breed, another day.

 

Swim School

Although the weanlings are quiet, for the next eight to 12 weeks their bodies will undergo changes that prepare them to face their lives in the open ocean. They will lose some of their blubber. They’ll finish growing teeth, so they can hunt their own food.

They venture into the surf to practice diving, swimming and holding their breath. Weaned pups learn to hold their breath around six minutes, some as long as 12 minutes. That will help them stay underwater and dive deep enough to catch food. They are on their own now.

They are more likely to be in the water at night, so early mornings and late afternoons are the best time to see them splash around and put their heads underwater to hold their breath. Most will leave the beach on their first migration by the end of April.

Watch a video on the Friends of the Elephant SealsYouTube channel.

Bachelor beaches

Few bachelor bulls have come to Hearst Memorial Beach at San Simeon Cove this year. They may have gone to other beaches, such as the north beach at the Piedras Blancas viewpoint and other points north.

State Parks tours

During this exciting season, February through March, State Parks is offering tours at the Arroyo Laguna beach. Tours are available 9 am on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Tickets are $13 per person. Meet at the parking lot, 2.25 miles north of the Hearst Castle Entrance and south of the Piedras Blancas viewpoint. 

Dress for conditions, walking on uneven rocky and sandy ground, possibly muddy. Wear sturdy, close-toed shoes. Dress in warm layers. 

Bring cameras and binoculars. Call 805-776-2564 or check the website for information.

Speakers Bureau

If your organization would like to learn more about the seals Friends of the Elephant Seal offers free speakers. To arrange a speaker, call the FES office, (805) 924-1628 or request a speaker through the website/. The Speaker’s Bureau Coordinator will respond and set up a date.

 

 

Smithsonian magazine

Smithsonian magazine focused on the role of Friends of the Elephant Seal in creating this safe viewing space for people to learn about the seals without disturbing them.

 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/northern-elephant-seals-learn-to-dive-deeply-quickly-their-southern-relatives-take-their-time-180983590/?fbclid=IwAR00uBv6mfPLfHTCnu3MhnXiBmbMVf3aJoZDgSAH4N1t6pBOV8ueVXAaC_w_aem_AV_84Ws3JwFlhr13QuZgayfK_yj1q-VTTFuI6LlpUfWbasEUAb7mKGB9Dq8YkGXctS0

Just Animals Podcast

I did a podcast about Elephant Seals with Elle and Guy Schwartz of Just Animals. It was fun! 

Watch it here. 

Weanlings on the beach. Looking good!

Pups grow fast

From newborn to weaned in a month

High tides have taken their toll on newborn elephant seal pups at the Piedras Blancas viewpoint, but hundreds survive. They grow fast on high-fat milk. Every day, more weaned pups are left on the beach. Their mothers leave them to manage on their own.

Fat weanlings

That’s not a problem for the weanlings. They are fat and sturdy, making the transition to independent life. As they mature, their bodies change from rapidly gaining weight to eating nothing, and living off that blubber. They grow from 75 pounds at birth to over 200 a month later. Visitors can estimate the age of the pups by size alone.  

They fast for the first time. All elephant seals have two long fasts every year in their annual cycle, while they are on the beach.

Their mothers are finished with their fast and ready to start feeding. They ate nothing while nursing the pup. They are thin, and need to return to the ocean to forage and gain the blubber that sustains, protects and insulates them. They will return in six or eight weeks, their healthy weight restored from nearly constant foraging.

This mother has given her blubber to her pup, who is almost as round as she is. She's ready to return to the ocean to feed.

Bulls, mothers, pups

Some females are still arriving at the beach to give birth, while other mothers have completed their maternal duties. Females mate with bulls before they leave the beach. Mating can be noisy, with the female barking and flapping around. Other bulls may take interest and chase the bull attempting to breed. Fights break out. Visitors see a wide range of development at the viewpoint.

Gulls are part of the beach ecosystem. They gather to consume the afterbirth, and clean up any pups that died. This one insisted on stealing milk while a pup nursed.

This gull annoyed both mother and pup by sneaking in to steal milk

One pup at a time

Elephant seal mothers have only a single pup. Since they don’t eat while they are nursing, they don’t have adequate reserves to feed multiple pups. It’s common for pups to nurse on mothers other then their own, though. Some mothers tolerate it better than others. Often mothers have several pups around them. Only one is hers.

This mother tolerates extra pups nursing. Around 80 percent of pups nurse on more than one mother. 

Mothers whose pups were washed away by high tides may adopt a pup, or at least be willing to let a hungry one nurse. Inexperienced mothers can become better mothers.

Pups are at risk if they get separated form their mothers. Mother-pup separation is the most frequent case of pup death, although over 90 percent of the pups born at Piedras Blancas survive.
Watching a pup search for its mother is heart-rending, but often a persistent pup will find its mother – or some mother willing to nurse it.

Weanling pods

Weaned pups congregate in groups called pods, out of the main breeding areas, along the base of the cliffs. Look for rotund seals with black skin peeling off. They shed the black coat they were born with after they are weaned. It reveals their first countershaded coat, dark on the back and light on the belly.

The fat weaner on the right has already shed his black newborn coat. His companion is in the process of getting that more mature countershading.

As the adults leave, weaned pups have more space to gradually make their way to the water. Their next developmental task is to learn to swim and dive. They are more likely to be in the water at night, so early mornings and late afternoons are the best time to see them splash around and put their heads underwater to hold their breath. Most will leave the beach on their first migration by the end of April.

King Tides

King Tides will inundate the beach again February 9. Fat weaned pups will be safer than newborns. Most of the seals are farther away from the water’s edge, but high tides always threaten some pups. The Coastal Commission encourages the public to document the extent of King Tides with photographs and share them with the Commission. 

My photos of February 9’s King Tide at Piedras Blancas, Hearst State Beach, San Simeon Cove, San Simeon Wastewater Treatment Plant, Arroyo del Padre Juan, Leffingwell Landing, and Santa Rosa Creek are posted on the Coastal Commission’s map.