West Seattle wildlife: Reminder to stay away from hauled-out seals

| West Seattle news | Wildlife

Out of the WSB inbox, from Kelly:

I was down at Lincoln Park (northwest side) … and there was a small group of people standing very close to a seal pup. I stopped and listened to what they were saying, ready to impart my seal (keep away!) knowledge if need be and ready to call the Seal Sitters. Apparently, one of the men who was standing there (a man maybe in his 60s or 70s?) had picked up the seal pup and tried to put it back in the water! Three people had stopped and told him that he needed to leave the seal alone. Apparently, he thought he was “helping” the seal and that it “was going to die” if it were left on the beach. I heard him say these things. I started to tell the group about the Seal Sitters and ask them to move their dog away (I had a dog with me too and wanted to move it away from the seal), but they were telling the man about a boat that will come and take the seal away if its mother doesn’t come back in a certain amount of time. ??

Anyway, I got my phone out to call Seal Sitters, but as I was looking for the number, a woman with a NOAA bag (presumably from Seal Sitters) came up and told everyone to back away and that we are supposed to stay at least 100 yards away, not 10. The other people explained what the man had done and as I left, she was talking with the man.

I just couldn’t believe that anyone would think it was a good idea to approach, let alone handle, a seal pup! There is a sign not too far away from where this happened explaining to people that you should leave marine mammals alone! WSB runs a story a week on seal pups! Why is there still so much ignorance? Very frustrating. Hope it all turns out well for the seal, but he was very scared looking and skittish when I saw him.

Seal Sitters did mention this briefly in the latest update on their “blubberblog” site (be sure to check out other entries, which now include lots of beautiful seal-pup video updates).

biankat November 3, 2010 (9:47 pm)

Ugh. Frustrating.

c November 3, 2010 (9:49 pm)

I guess there is someone in West Seattle that doesn’t read the blog :) I’m glad the pup didn’t return to water and the seal sitters arrived in time.

HunterG November 3, 2010 (9:57 pm)

oh lord….I feel sorry for that guy – he most likely had no idea what he was doing, I hope momma comes back for it.

Dennis Cheasebro November 3, 2010 (10:59 pm)

There must be a very large proportion of people who don’t spend even a small fraction of their time acquiring accurate and useful knowledge. I guess they’d rather just blunder through life.

Chuck and Sally\'s Van Man November 3, 2010 (11:26 pm)

I’d just be pleased if either of the dogs reference were leashed. Talk about people ignoring the signs…

transplantella November 3, 2010 (11:55 pm)

I remember there was a news story a couple of months ago about a couple who *found* a seal pup–on the coast I think–and took it back to their hotel room!
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You’ve got to wonder what people are thinking.

Jason November 4, 2010 (6:30 am)

Geez… “What are people thinking“???

In their mind, they are trying to HELP. Don’t fault them for their lack of appropriate knowledge or the fact they don’t read the WSB every day like some of us do.

Just be grateful they had something in their heart that wanted to do something for the seal pup, as opposed to something that said “just leave it alone to die…” Yes, leaving it alone is the correct thing to do in this case, but I think the person’s intentions were good. Cut’em a break – it’s not like he was caught clubbing it.

michael November 4, 2010 (7:18 am)

please people—-these are wild animals !!!!!!! Also, again–It
is against the law to walk your dog in the Park without a leash !!

austin November 4, 2010 (8:10 am)

Dog owners know the rules already but choose not to abide by them.

Al November 4, 2010 (8:13 am)

Ya, let’s not hang the guy, he was trying to help. Plus, you guys all realize that seals aren’t endangered, right? The only reason it’s so hugely popular to obsess about them is that THEY’RE CUTE. Sure, I think they’re as cute as the next guy does, but we’ve got plenty of seals to go around (even if human contact does cause some to die), so lets all just calm down. In my opinion, “Seal Sitters” could probably contribute more to environmentalism as a whole if they focussed their time on an issue that actually matters, not just one that’s cute.

Kelly November 4, 2010 (8:27 am)

FYI: Both dogs in the story were leashed and on the walkway, not on the beach. Sorry that was not clear in the original post. The seal was pretty close to the seawall because the tide was coming in and I didn’t want the close proximity of the dogs to frighten the seal any further. The dogs were both at least 10 feet at all times (I know that that is not far enough, but it was the best we could do in the situation.)

Bender November 4, 2010 (9:52 am)

Seal Sitters take care of baby seals. That’s what they do. Should groups that care for the welfare of human children stop just because they want to work with cute kids? At least they’re doing something good for the animal world as opposed to just blowing hot air on a blog. Grow up.

datamuse November 4, 2010 (11:59 am)

Please to be defining “matters”, Al.

Al November 4, 2010 (2:49 pm)

–Bender: I don’t understand your argument about not helping kids because they are cute, so I can’t address it very well. I’m not seeing the parallel between human child welfare and baby seal welfare.

–Datamuse: There are a great many environmental issues that “matter.” Here’s a pretty good list: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_environmental_issues

Note that seal pups being approached by humans does not appear on the list. I don’t hate seals, all I’m saying is I find it strange that seal pups get such huge attention, blog posts, bronze plaques, and armies of defenders –just because they are cute. Maybe it would be wise to spend our resources on bigger problems? Seriously, we have plenty, check that link out.

And FYI, worldwide, when non-human animals happen across baby seals alone on beaches in the wild? They eat them.

EileneHutchinson November 4, 2010 (4:54 pm)

I’m glad to see such an animated discussion :).
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I agree with Jason, that the passerby tried to intervene to help the pup, which is a good attitude. Hopefully, he and others will learn from what they see posted here, speaking with others, the best way to help seal pups.
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And, Al, in the wild, a seal pup may be attacked by wild animals for dinner. In the urban environment, there are other dangers, and that is where Seal Sitters tries to help. It is part of humans trying to lessen the impact of civilization encroaching on the lands (and waters) of wild animals.
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There have also been comments about volunteers using their time for helping humanity. Two of the other Seal Sitters I volunteer with are also involved in helping the homeless and low income – feeding programs and medical clinics. Others had volunteered with a local mission, sorting food into their “client” kitchen shelves, packing food baskets, etc.
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There have been numerous stories on the WSB about various “clean-up” projects around West Seattle that anyone can participate in. Members of the Alki Community Council set up a “clean-up the beach” volunteer opportunity through the Seattle Parks Dept and made early morning sweeps of the fire-ring areas and beach/park this summer.
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The local schools would love to have volunteer tutors if one would like to help a child have a good start with their education.
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Living in an urban environment reduces the opportunity for children and adults alike to see wildlife. Seal Sitting provides this chance to passers by, as we share binoculars to see a seal pup “up close” without disturbing it. We answer questions they might have, hand out information sheets, and encourage them to call 206-905-SEAL if they see a seal or any other marine mammal on the beach.
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Our waters are quite polluted. Seeing these “cute” pups in that environment might encourage individuals to help find ways to change this.
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We enjoy this chance to observe wildlife, interact with the public, and relax in Seattle’s “great outdoors”.
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See http://www.blubberblog.org for stories on local seal pups and http://www.sealsitters.org for good information on Harbor seals.

Bender November 4, 2010 (4:57 pm)

You can’t see why the welfare of animals is important? I’d hate to be your pet. I agree that given the choice, a human life is worth more than an animal life to me. baby seals get more attention because they are native to the area. You wouldn’t see any of this if you lived in Montana. But saying that someone is wrong for taking care of baby animals is arrogant and it looks like you want everyone to share the same viewpoint as you. As far as your list, yes, those are other causes that matter. It seems to me you just pulled a list off of Wikipedia and said “Here are the things that matter. Only focus on these because the rest are BS.” And as for your last point, the non-humans eat baby seals because they are animals—that’s what animals do when they’re hungry. Animals don’t care about preserving another baby animal’s life. That’s what separates us from them. Well, most of us anyway.

WestSide45 November 4, 2010 (6:37 pm)

It has been mentioned that the seal pups are cute, to which I agree. Until one latches onto your arm with their pointy little teeth, that is. They develop teeth just after weaning; can you tell if the pup has been weaned?

Al November 4, 2010 (8:34 pm)

Nobody said anything about it being wrong to take care of animals, I just said that the attention lavished on these seals is far out of proportion to their value to the area –or to their need. Seals are doing fine. A few seals we see in a population of thousands that exist in the metro area alone is of no realistic significance.

Dennis Cheasebro November 5, 2010 (12:04 am)

Al, I ultimately find that I agree with your point. You might have been a good deal more sensitive in how you expressed it: your harshness was counterproductive.

s November 5, 2010 (7:39 am)

My guess is that Al was responding to some of the self-righteous posts on how people should be ashamed of themselves for not knowing how to handle a baby seal.
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What’s the difference between walking up to a spider and squashing it, and walking up to a seal and squashing it?

Jen November 5, 2010 (10:08 am)

s,
Harbor seals are a marine mammal and are federally protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. It is a federal crime to harass, kill, injure or capture marine mammals.

datamuse November 9, 2010 (12:27 pm)

Al, a list of examples is not a definition, and I’m just as capable of finding a link on Wikipedia as you are. I actually agree with you that there are other issues that are more important. As a science librarian at a university with a highly regarded environmental studies program, I’m quite aware of what those are. That’s why I volunteer with Nature Consortium instead of Seal Sitters.
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What I don’t quite understand, and perhaps you can enlighten me, is how NOT having the Seal Sitters somehow addresses those other issues. It’s a bit like telling your kid to clean his plate because children are starving in Africa. One has no direct effect on the other.

Sorry, comment time is over.