« Northern Elephant Seals: Physical Traits | Main | Año Nuevo State Reserve: Light Station History »

February 23, 2006

Northern Elephant Seals: Habitat

Año Nuevo Point Año Nuevo State Reserve

Año Nuevo State Reserve is home to the largest land-based rookery (breeding spot) of the Northern Elephant Seal in the world. More than two thousand pups are born here each and every year.

Despite the fact that the Northern Elephant Seal population was down under 100 animals about a century ago, the animals have made a rather spectacular recovery. The first elephant seal was spotted off the coast of Año Nuevo island in 1955, and soon after they began to haul out on the island. The first pup was born on the island in 1961, and then in 1975, the first pup was born on the mainland dunes.

Sand Dunes Año Nuevo State Reserve

The sand dunes at the point are ideal for raising elephant seal pups. when they're born, the pups cannot swim, nor do they have the protective blubber that allows the grown-up elephant seals to stay warm in the cold Pacific waters. Instead, the pups need some nice, dry land safe from storm surge and flooding, in order to nurse and grow their blubber. Then, as weaners, they need tidepools and shallows to teach themselves to swim and feed. Año Nuevo is ideal, as the dunes are sheltered from most of the storm surge, and the waters between the point and the island are very shallow. In fact, less than a century ago, one could walk from the point to the island at low tide.

As the Northern Elephant Seal population continues to grow, new rookeries have been established. But adequate habitats available to the seals are few and far between. Sometimes, elephant seals haul out in areas where humans have already taken over. These seals are often harassed, and rangers will sometimes chase these seals back into the water. A new rookery has been established in the past few years at Point Reyes, north of San Francisco, but during the last El Niño storm season, storm surge drown an entire season's batch of elephant seal pups.

Negative Effects of Human Interaction Año Nuevo State Reserve

But the elephant seals refuse to give up. One of the newest rookeries is along a stretch of Central California coastline near Hearst Castle. The rookery here is so close to the Pacific Highway that there have even been traffic accidents involving elephant seals.

Despite the fact that the elephant seal is no longer considered endangered, they are still under the protection of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, which makes illegal any hunting, capturing, or killing, or harassment of any marine mammal. You must stay back at least 25 feet, often farther, from these wild creatures. That doesn't stop people from harassing the animals anyway. They'll poke them with sticks, throw rocks, and kick them. Dogs pose a special problem for elephant seals, causing them no end of grief. If you see someone harassing an elephant seal, or any other marine mammal, you should report them to the nearest ranger station or to the police.

Año Nuevo Docent-Led Tours Año Nuevo State Reserve

One of the best ways to see the Northern Elephant Seal safely in its native habitat, especially if you've never seen them before, is to take a docent-led tour at a place like Año Nuevo State Reserve. The docents are great for giving you lots of valuable information on the elephant seals, as well as the native plants, geology, and native peoples of the area.

Posted by sorsha at February 23, 2006 1:41 PM