(Phoca vitulina)
The waters along the Pacific Northwest coast are full of harbour seals! The harbour seal is the most widely distributed seal in the world, inhabiting temperate, subarctic & coastal areas on both sides of the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans.
5 subspecies inhabit the northern oceans, with a total estimate for the species, could be as high as 500,000.
Harbor seals have rounded heads and the adult’s body shapes resemble a larger version of juveniles, they can look like dogs in the water. I’ve always called them sea dogs….but when seen out of the water, there is no doubt that they are seals!
The colour of their coats varies widely. The background colour is pale grey in a newly moulted animal, changing to pale brown tan before the next moult. After moulting, they are spotted or speckled, and covered with rings, spots & blotches.
The pattern of speckles or spots on a harbour seal’s coat is unique to each seal. It does not change from year to year – a useful feature in the identification of individual seals!