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Grey Seal
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Taken at Troon on 17th October 2021 using Nikon D500 with Sigma 600 mm zoom lens.
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| Grey Seal. |
| Species: Order: Family: A.K.A. |
Halichoerus grypus. Carnivora. Phocidae. Atlantic seal, Horsehead seal. |
| Habitat: Food: Appearance: |
On and
around the coasts. Notably large colonies are at Donna Nook, the Farne
Islands, Orkney and North Rona, Lambay Island and Ramsey Island In the German Bight, colonies exist off the islands of Sylt and Amrum and on Heligoland. A wide variety of fish, but will eat whatever is available, including octopus and lobster. Bulls reach 2.5–3.3 m long and weigh from 170–310 kg ; the cows are much smaller, typically 1.6–2.0 m long and 100–190 kg in weight. Pups are born at around a mass of 14 kg. They are born in the Autumn (September to November) in the west, with a dense, soft silky white fur; at first small, they rapidly fatten up on their mothers' extremely fat-rich milk. The milk can consist of up to 60% fat. Within a month or so they shed the pup fur, grow dense waterproof adult fur, and leave for the sea to learn to fish for themselves. |