Today on this sunny trip we got to see some awesome pinnipeds! We started our day off by getting to see celebrity Harbor Seal, Popeye, before we even left the docks of Friday Harbor! As we headed out we were treated to even more adorable "rock sausages" as we passed through the cactus islands. Harbor seals are about 5 feet long and 200 pounds. This area is at carrying capacity in terms of our Harbor Seal population- this means that our ecosystem can not support any more of these little critters!
You'll find these Harbor seals hauled out on rocky formations like we saw today, as well as swimming by like a grey volleyball floating by with two eyes staring back at you. After spending some awesome time with our Harbor Seals we continued up to Saturna Islands in Canada! While circumnavigating Saturna we also happened upon some Steller Sea Lions! These guys are MASSIVE! They can be up to 12 feet long and wiegh up to 2,500 pounds! We hung out with these sea lions for a bit and enjoyed their vocalizations which definetly sound like growls!
Our pinnipeds did not dissapoint on this sunny afternoon and certainly provided some excellent entertainment.
Until Next Time,
Naturalist Alexandria