The Seal Conservancy is happy to report that the first pup of the season was born at Casa Beach on February 4, 2017! But, wait - there's more! Mara and Jenny, two more pups, were born on February 5! Soon, these pups will be popping up all over the beach. If you missed the first few births, there is still plenty of time to witness the beauty of a live birth or watch pups and moms nursing, swimming, or being playful. Under the safe and peaceful conditions of a closed beach, we can reasonably expect there to be 40 - 50 successful seal pup births at the rookery this year, with the majority of births between February and late March.
Harbor seals are pregnant for 9 - 11 months? If pregnant seals have a safe place to rest before birth, then it is very likely that the average newborn pup will be born full term and weighing 20 - 24 pounds. It is very important that once this pup is born, the mother is undisturbed for 24 hours and is able to bond with the pup. Once the mom and pup have bonded, the newborn will nurse from its mother for one month before it is weaned and ready to swim and hunt on its own.
The chain is up and the beach is closed for the 2017 harbor seal pupping season, but this almost did not happen because of on-going litigation. Please visit our Latest News webpage to stay informed of the news at Casa Beach.
Follow the pup births at Casa Beach by checking in our Pup News 2017 page. We try to keep track of each birth as it occurs - sometimes 3 or 4 in one day - and update our page with details and photos of the newborn pups.
