A Seal in Great Bay

[Gibby]

I had a today off, so my plan was to head out first thing this morning and see what I could come across. I had no specific plan in mind other than to hit Lucille's for breakfast, visit the radio tower nearby and then drive north up the coast from Great Bay looking for new areas to explore. Just before noon, while returning back from the Coast Guard station at the end of Great Bay Boulvard, I saw a several ducks that I wanted to photograph. I pulled off to the side by the last bridge and walked through the bushes to get to Little Sheepshead Creek. It was to be an ambush by me. While kneeling and waiting for them to come out from under the bridge, I glanced to my left. At first, I thought it was a duck with its rump in the air or a buoy adrift. As my mind wrapped itself around what I was seeing, ears, eyes and whiskers began to form. A seal! I couldn't believe it. A seal in Little Sheepshead Creek. I managed to get one picture before it submerged and disappeared. I only saw it for a moment and the seal never surfaced again while I was there.

The location is here - http://maps.njpinebarrens.com/#lat=39.5202060565104&lng=-74.31800365447998&z=18&type=h&gpx=

 

[dogg57]

Good for you Gibby

 

[Boyd]

Very nice - what a lucky shot!

 

[Gibby]

Thanks Dogg and Boyd. I was focused on the ducks and missed more shots of it. Atleast I got one clear photograph.

 

[geezerfinneran]

Fantastic !

 

[PancoastDrifter]

I just put 2 and 2 together... ;-) Nice shot!

 

[46er]

Nice shot!! The fish factory, and the islands around it, are a wintering spot for quite a few of them, up to around 50, but you need a boat They like to haul themselves out when its sunny. Barnegat Inlet is another good spot to see them from land.

 

[Gibby]

Nice shot!! The fish factory, and the islands around it, are a wintering spot for quite a few of them, up to around 50, but you need a boat They like to haul themselves out when its sunny. Barnegat Inlet is another good spot to see them from land.

Thanks, that is good to know. You know how sheltered land lubbers can be. I was quite surprised.

 

[46er]

My oldest son volunteers with the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine as a stranding volunteer. It's amazing how many seals they respond to each year. If you ever see one, keep your distance. They are not very friendly.

 

[dogg57]

Nice shot!! The fish factory, and the islands around it, are a wintering spot for quite a few of them, up to around 50, but you need a boat They like to haul themselves out when its sunny. Barnegat Inlet is another good spot to see them from land.

Never knew that.Thanks for the info.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Great photo. Nice to see that seals seem to be back on the rise in our area. I saw a harbor seal last year sunning itself in the Manasquan River right by the train bridge.

 

[46er]

Once the herring run starts you have a better chance of seeing more, they love herring That's what the guy in the pic was probably munching on. Driving/walking the beach is another way to get a good look at them, but as I said, watch your distance, they can move surprisingly quick and are more ornery if they are hurt. Just take a look at that guys mouth; if you get nipped there is little doubt it will infect.

 

[Hewey]

Cool!

 

[geezerfinneran]

I was reminded of this old Scot's folk song..

I am a man upon the land,
I am a selkie on the sea,
And when I'm far and far frae land,
My home it is in Sule Skerrie."
And he had ta'en a purse of gold,
And he had placed it upon her knee,
Saying: "Give it to my little young son,
And take thee up they nurse's fee."
"And it shall come to pass on a summer's day,
When the sun shines bright on every stane,
I'll come and fetch my little son,
and teach him how to swim the faem."