Growing pup, but who is the mother?
This week, a new pup was born on the haul out beach. First spotted by Sue and Trev on Tuesday, this pup has caused us some concern. Seal group members have been out in force hoping to see the pup being fed. The pup looks very healthy and its obvious growth is evidence of regular feeds. As a result of our lack of observations of feeds, there is some uncertainty about which seal is its mother. Perhaps she is a night feeder!? For some fantastic photos of this pup and a rare sight of its Mum, visit 17/11/05 at www.cornishseals.co.uk
Pup 2005P on haul out beach at 5 days old (Left) : Same Pup the following day (Right.)
Every seal watch brings a new experience. The adult seals were sleeping on the beach today, whilst a seagull was feeding off scraps around them. One seagull mistook a seal's nose for its next meal, waking the seal who was surprised to see a flash of white shoot through the air right in front of its face. Seals seek out each others company when resting on the beach, but occasionally they get too close for comfort. This results in the seals 'flippering' each other - patting the offending seal repeatedly with their fore flipper until it moves out of the way. Today was the first time I have seen more than one seal do this simultaneously.
Who got the biggest shock? (Left) : Seals play pattercake - 2's company, 3's a crowd! (Right.)
On Saturday a British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) Marine Mammal Medic (MMM) course was held for students at Cornwall College Newquay, Centre for Applied Zoology. The morning part of the course covers more theoretical aspects of Marine Mammal Rescue - Species identification (Darryl), Cetacean rescue assessment and first aid (Phil), Seal rescue assessment and first aid (Sue) and Health & Safety (Dave.) In the afternoon, the students were out in Newquay harbour for the practicals, where they got the chance to put all their skills into practice. For more photos from the day, visit www.cornishseals.co.uk/bdmlr-newquay
MMM students (Left 2) : Darryl lectures on Cetacean ID (right) : Phil lectures on rescue assessment (Far right.)
