Harbor seals are found all over the world, and pups are born at different times of year depending on where you study them.  Harbor seal pups are born in the spring here in San Francisco Bay, California.  When pups are born, they are quite small, weighing only 17-25 pounds (compared to their mothers, who weigh roughly 220 pounds).  But, they grow fast!!
 
 

Harbor seal pups stay with their mothers for only 4 to 6 weeks -- then they are on their own.  Seal pups grow fast, and learn fast, too -- they can swim as soon as they are born, and can catch fish by the time they are 10 days old!  Harbor seal mothers feed their pups milk, just as human mothers do (that's one of the things that makes a seal a mammal).  In the time that they are with their mothers, pups nurse frequently and gain up to 1 1/2 pounds a day.

Usually, however, life is quite peaceful for harbor seal pups and their mothers --
 

mothers spend many hours on the haul out with their pups, sleeping and nursing.

  This mother (with the red head and green back) is known to our field biologists as "AlgaeMom" (because she has algae growing on her back!!) -- here she is with her pup.  Notice how clean and silvery the pup looks compared to the adult seals.  Maybe we should call her pup "AlgaeNone"...

Harbor seal mothers usually come back to the same place to have their pups each year -- we hope to see many of the same mothers next year with healthy new pups!
 
 
 

Harbor seal mothers are easily bothered by people near their pups -- if you see harbor seal mothers and pups out in the wild, be very careful not to disturb them -- don't make lots of noise, and don't go too close!!  Harbor seal mothers sometimes leave their pups alone on land while they go off to sea to hunt for fish.  If you see a seal pup alone on the beach, don't disturb it, mom will probably be back soon!!

Baby harbor seals are called___________________.

Harbor seals use these to paddle through the water:  _____________

Animals that are warm-blooded are called ________________.

In what state is San Francisco Bay located?

Primitive plants that live in the water are called________________.

An animal that eats other animals is called a __________________.

In what season are harbor seals born in San Francisco Bay?

Harbor seal mothers are easily bothered by people near their babies -- True or False?
 

 

Algae:  primitive plants that live in the water.  Seaweed, which you often see growing on rocks near the beach, is an algae; so is the giant kelp that grows in Monterey Bay, California, and other places.

Flipper:  No, not the dolphin!  A long, long time ago, the ancestors of seals lived on the land, like we do.   Now, they live in the ocean, and their arms and legs have changed (over many many years) into flippers!!  Harbor seals have two sets of flippers -- rear (or hind) flippers, which they use to paddle through the water, and front (or fore) flippers, which they use for many things, such as pulling themselves up on land...

Mammal:  mammals have hair, give birth to live young (they don't lay eggs), and nurse their babies with milk.  Humans are mammals, and so are dogs, and cats, and whales, and seals! (just to name a few...)  Mammals are also "warm-blooded", so it is important that they stay warm -- humans wear clothes and heat their houses to stay warm, seals have a thick layer of fat (called "blubber") to help them stay warm in the cold ocean water.

Predator:  an animal that eats other animals -- lions eat antelope in Africa, sharks eat seals in California, and birds eat insects everywhere!  You can probably think of a lot of predators and the animals that they eat (called "prey").
 

Did you miss the last Kid's Page??
 

Click on this seal to go to the Winter 1998 page...
 
 
 

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