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Pupping Season For Harbor Seals Closes Some Areas Of Point Reyes National Seashore

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Published Date

February 27, 2018
Harbor seal pups at Point Reyes National Seashore/NPS

It's pupping season for harbor seals at Point Reyes National Seashore, which means some seasonal closures for watersports/NPS, Trish Carney

With pupping season approaching for harbor seals, some areas of Point Reyes National Seashore in California will be closed for the coming months to recreational users.

The annual closures take effect this Thursday. They apply to Drakes Estero and the westernmost point of Limantour Spit, and will remain in effect through June 30. Park rangers ask visitors to stay at least 100 yards (300 feet) away from resting seals.

Visitors should never pick up a seal pup. Although they may appear abandoned, seal pups are most likely waiting for their mother to return. Pups are about two feet long and weigh about 24 pounds and are weaned 30 days after birth. If you are concerned about a particular seal, please contact park staff at one of the visitor centers.

Point Reyes National Seashore has one of the largest concentrations of breeding harbor seals on the mainland of California with a population of approximately 6,000 seals. Resting and pupping harbor seals come onshore in various parts of the park particularly in Tomales Bay, Tomales Point, Double Point, Drakes Estero, and Bolinas Lagoon. Each year, seals congregate within the Seashore to give birth on sandbars and remote beaches.

All recreational water access in Drakes Estero is closed during this season. The closure applies to kayaks and canoes, and also is applicable to surfers, windsurfers, paddle boards, and other water sport users around harbor seal colonies. All access to the westernmost point of Limantour Spit is also closed.  Hog Island in Tomales Bay is closed during this same time period for nesting and roosting seabirds such as double-crested cormorants and brown pelicans.

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