Sleepy seals make the most of Delaware’s beaches

Sleepy seals need a place to rest and the Delaware beaches offer some of the best napping spots as young pups travel south and explore the ocean.

And like most other mammals, seals are not big fans of being disturbed while trying to get their beauty rest.

“They’re beautiful to look at and just beautiful to watch, but it’s best for everybody and the animal to keep 150 feet of distance,” said Suzanne Thurman, executive director of the Marine Education, Research and Rehabilitation Institute based in Lewes.

Keeping 150 feet away from a seal actually is federal law.

Millville resident Bob Myers wasn’t aware of that when he was walking along the beach in Delaware Seashore State Park in mid-January. As he and his wife reached the top of a dune crossing at Conquest Beach, they noticed a dark blob in the sand near the water.

At first, Myers said, he thought it was a bird. But as they got closer it became obvious that the flipper he thought was a wing would never support the flight of an animal that round.

READ:Another snowy week expected for Delaware

“We were fortunate I had a telephoto lens on the camera, so we were able to get a closer look without having to stand right next to it,” the retiree said. “It was a total surprise for us to run into a seal as soon as we got on the beach. It’s exciting to run into a wild animal like that and respect it.”

Myers said they did keep their distance and had no intention of closely approaching the harbor seal, but it wasn’t until MERR volunteer Dean Dey arrived that Myers learned of the 150-foot minimum.

Dey, one of dozens of MERR volunteers who respond to marine animal sightings and educate the public about the animals, said he thinks of seals like the one Myers spotted as aquatic wild dogs.

“They just want to be left alone for a while so they can take a nap and warm up a bit,” the retired marine biologist said. “It’s entirely natural for seals to come up on the beach this time of year. They’re migrating along our coast, and it’s great to just stay back and observe them and watch them.”

Thurman said MERR usually responds to 150 to 200 seal sightings each year. Many are just resting and slip back into the water before volunteers arrive, but sometimes the story doesn’t have a happy ending.

Occasionally, deceased, injured or sick seals are found on shore and MERR works with similar organizations nearby as well as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to rescue an animal and get it to rehabilitation if possible.

That’s what happened last year with Phil, a wayward harbor seal that traveled 12 miles up the Murderkill River, crossed a road and spent weeks near the spillway at Coursey Pond. Phil eventually got stuck in the mud, was captured and was sent to rehab for eye injuries before she was released back into the wild.

Thurman said it’s not uncommon to see seals in creeks and waterways, in the marshes of the Inland Bays and on rocks and jetties along the coast. She estimated about 25 percent of the seal sightings include animals that seem sick or injured – which can include wounds from shark attacks or getting caught up in fishing gear.

But even healthy-looking seals can carry diseases that could be passed on to humans or animals. And like other wild animals, seals will bite if provoked. They’re also quite large: A full-grown male gray seal can weigh up to 800 pounds.

“They’re not going to chase you, but they’re wild animals and they are afraid of us,” Thurman said. “Our beaches are now populated 12 months out of the year and there are so many human-use overlap areas where the seals are hauling out. Our live presence with volunteers and education at the same time has been very beneficial.”

Thurman said seals have been seen along Delmarva for decades, but it seems like they’re starting to show up sooner and staying longer. It’s not clear exactly why that may be, but their normal peak time in Delaware from February to April coincides with the end of the regular pupping season, which usually wraps up in mid-February.

READ:Delaware House expected to vote on sexual harassment rules this week

When Lanni Hall started working with NOAA nearly a decade ago, seal sightings along Delmarva were quite rare. But now it’s becoming quite common to see harbor seals and gray seals along the beaches, rocks and harbors along the Delaware coast and in the Chesapeake Bay.

“As the population is growing, they’re naturally coming back into the areas they historically used to be,” said Hall, who is the Mid-Atlantic Marine Mammal Stranding Coordinator at NOAA. “Seals are here and we need to share the shore with them.”

She credited the Marine Mammal Protection Act passed in 1972 as the main reason seal populations are growing. Most seals only have one pup a year and may not reproduce every year, but they can live for more than a decade.

Gray seals, which are a bit shyer than their harbor-dwelling counterparts, usually stick between the Canadian islands and the Gulf of Maine where they forage and reproduce. The seals seen on Delaware beaches are likely young seals that are wandering along the coast, following food and getting their bearings.

“They’re only with their mothers for less than 30 days, so it’s a natural process for the pups to leave,” Hall said. “They’re exploring. They’re going new places and they do haul out to rest.”

Thurman said she has also seen harp seals and hooded seals along the coast, but they are far less common than the young harbor and gray seals seen resting on the shore.

Regardless of whether the animal is taking a break or looks like it’s in trouble, Hall and Thurman encourage people to contact MERR if they see a seal or any other stranded marine animal. For more about MERR or to report a sighting, go to www.merrinstitute.org or call the 24-hour stranding hotline at 302-228-5029.

“If you encounter a seal, call MERR, but also just sit back and enjoy it,” Dey said. “It’s a wonderful experience and a wonderful part of living on the coast.”

Contact reporter Maddy Lauria at (302) 345-0608, mlauria@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @MaddyinMilford.