Gray Seal at WestHampton Beach

[Domboski]

I took my dog for a brief trip to the beach (couldn't take the cold wind) and was lucky enough to catch photos of a gray seal basking on the beach. It was amazing how docile the seal was and how the cold had no effect.

There was a wildlife administrator on hand who said it was completely normal for the seal to be on the beach alone. She mentioned there was others down the beach a bit. She was keeping an eye on the seal because it happened to be basking in an area where a lot of people walk around.

 

[Killerdrgn]

did you give it a belly rub?
It looks like it's asking for one.

 

[Domboski]

did you give it a belly rub?
It looks like it's asking for one.

It definitely looked like it wanted one :lol2: It did not mind people around it at all. The only time it moved is when motorcycles drove by the beach. It "roared" once and it was surprisingly loud.

 

[jhale]

I did not even know we had seals in our area :duh:
I've never seen one around.

How big was it?
Did Rusty try to play with it?

 

[jejton]

Do you know of other beaches that are good for seal spotting? I have some free time coming up and I'd like to do some nature walks, especially on the beach, and do some photography - something I haven't had much time for lately.

 

[aznt1217]

Dom... you have a dog? I didn't see it at your place haha

 

[Domboski]

I did not even know we had seals in our area :duh:
I've never seen one around.

How big was it?
Did Rusty try to play with it?

It was about 3.5 feet long. I didn't bring Rusty near the seal. I did not want to upset he seal. Rusty was in the car while I grabbed a few pics with my phone. My friends that were body boarders in HS used to tell me they would see seals and penguins at the beach. This is the first time I have seen one in person but I believe it is fairly common.

 

[Domboski]

Do you know of other beaches that are good for seal spotting? I have some free time coming up and I'd like to do some nature walks, especially on the beach, and do some photography - something I haven't had much time for lately.

I'm not sure Eric. Maybe try Smith Point Beach on a Sunny day. My guess is that any of the south shore beaches that are up against the Atlantic ocean are the best spots.

 

[Domboski]

Dom... you have a dog? I didn't see it at your place haha

:lol2: He wasn't home the last time you were over :biggrin:

 

[NYPDFrogman]

I did not even know we had seals in our area :duh:
I've never seen one around.

How big was it?
Did Rusty try to play with it?

they are very common there is an island off the UN called Utaunt Island
there is usually 2-3 on island this time of year

also Swinburn Island off Staten island is popular with the seals

I did encounter a seal diving off fort wadsworth he was very curious but kept his distance

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

There are seals up this way in the hudson too. We saw one a few weeks ago during the deep freeze.

 

[Domboski]

There are seals up this way in the hudson too. We saw one a few weeks ago during the deep freeze.

That's awesome!

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

They are really cool looking animals. Now if I could get a pic of the damn Bald Eagles

 

[OBTEPPER]

seals

It was about 3.5 feet long. I didn't bring Rusty near the seal. I did not want to upset he seal. Rusty was in the car while I grabbed a few pics with my phone. My friends that were body boarders in HS used to tell me they would see seals and penguins at the beach. This is the first time I have seen one in person but I believe it is fairly common.

I saw seals near Gracie Mansion a couple of years ago. I've never seen penguins in the northen hemisphere though.

 

[gimincorp]

I will post a pic of a bold eagle for you.

They are really cool looking animals. Now if I could get a pic of the damn Bald Eagles

I spotted one in a park recently, but don't have the pic on me while I'm at work...

 

[Domboski]

I spotted one in a park recently, but don't have the pic on me while I'm at work...

Awesome. Chief gets them in his backyard!

 

[jejton]

NYPDFrogman - Whats UN?

I did know that there are seals around here but never heard about penguins. Perhaps they saw terns from a little far off and thought they were penguins.

 

[Domboski]

They are not into nature as much as I am but when we were kids they talked about seahorses, dolphins & seals all of the time and I thought they were nuts. That all proved to be true so I since have given them the benefit of the doubt

 

[ellebelle]

The only penguins that live in the Northern Hemisphere are the galapagos penguins that live mostly on a single island in the Galapagos islands. Otherwise, the farthest north they occur is the coast of South Africa and off the coast of Namibia, New Zealand, and the southern tip of South America (Argentina and Chile).

south africa, not new york.

 

[Domboski]

I've seen Penguins living at Atlantis Marine World in Riverhead