Edmonds Seal Sitters in Action: Volunteer Group Called to Marina Beach

While strolling on Marina Beach on Thursday, Vivian Murray of Edmonds came face-to-face with one of Puget Sound’s most popular residents.

“As I went to see some seabirds perching at the end of the jetty, I practically stumbled on this seal pup,” Murray says. “I’m not sure who was more surprised, the seal or me.”

Murray did exactly what many people do these days. She called the Edmonds Seal Sitters, a volunteer group established in 2008 to tend to marine mammals on Edmonds beaches. Most are baby harbor seals, which are called "pups."

Murray’s call went to and founder of Seal Sitters. Morrow, as it turns out, was walking along the waterfront with another Edmonds Seal Sitter volunteer.

“This pup was plump, responsive, apparently healthy and had no outward signs of injury,” said Morrow. “I estimated it to be approximately five to six weeks old, right around the age that harbor seal pups are weaned by their mothers. So it could have been waiting for its mother, who might have been out searching for food, or the pup might have been on its own, resting before taking off to look for food for itself.”

Morrow says the Seal Sitters have responded to about 60 calls about seal pups on the Edmonds waterfront since Labor Day. Three of those pups were dead. In 2010, the calls stopped on Oct. 26. “This year, the calls kept coming right into the first week of December, then it was quiet of the holidays … until today. There is a 50 percent mortality rate for harbor seal pups in the first year of life, so while it is distressing to hear about a dead seal, we have a stable population and do our best to help protect them.”

Morrow says that there are about 15 people who volunteer their time and "sit" with the seal pups, keeping people from getting too close to the animals—which stresses them—and answering questions about seal behavior. There are rehab facilities if the pups need intervention.

“People are very curious about these young seals, and the pups are quite cute, which can be a problem because people then want to get too close to them, try to pet them, feed them and cover them with towels to keep them warm.”

Morrow says beachgoers should not touch, feed, move, pet or otherwise disturb marine mammals.

“It is absolutely normal behavior for seals to come ashore every day to rest and warm up,” she said. “Young seal pups will stay with their mothers for four to six weeks nursing with very rich mother's milk, but then the pups are weaned and must fend for themselves. The young seals need their time ashore to rest, and if they are bothered by humans—and dogs—it can be harmful to them. The younger animals will often rest on a public beach because they haven't learned to be wary of humans yet. We seldom get adult seals resting on the Edmonds waterfront.”

Those who find a seal pup on the Edmonds waterfront should call the Seal Sitters hot line at 425-326-3336.

To learn more about the Edmonds Seal Sitters, including opportunities for volunteering, you can visit the group’s Web site. The Seal Sitters receives support from federal agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as the City of Edmonds police, animal control and parks maintenance departments.