by Nancy Whelan

Young harbor seal pup. Photo courtesy of Stan Keiser.

As we dive into the 2010 pupping season with our coastal pinniped friends, many Coastside families are asking “What can we do to help?” 2009 was a record year for sea lion strandings on the California coast, and San Mateo County beaches were no exception. Throughout May and June, Coastside residents and tourists alike witnessed a shocking number of emaciated or deceased sea lion yearlings stranded on our shores. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Web site summarizes last year’s phenomenon like this: “No wind, no water, no food.” Changes in the atmosphere, consistent with El Niño conditions, impacted the wind, which plays a crucial role in creating a productive food chain. Last May and June, the winds just stopped, causing a diminished upwelling — which means the deeper, nutrient-rich coastal waters never surfaced, resulting in a food chain that left the sea lions high and dry.

But it’s not always Mother Nature who interferes with a marine mammal’s ability to fend for itself. Sometimes it’s our own maternal or paternal instincts. For instance, well-meaning humans who approach or pick up stranded harbor seal pups wreak havoc on that animal’s chances for survival. Harbor seal pups frequently get separated from their mothers temporarily, and what looks like a stranding may not be a stranding at all. The pup’s mother is usually nearby and watching, sometimes from the water where we can’t see her. If she spies humans and dogs around her pup, she will become distressed and leave the scene. The pup is then truly orphaned and unable to get the much-needed antibodies from its mother’s milk, making it susceptible to diseases.

Coastside families have a unique opportunity to play an important role in helping coastal marine mammals, including harbor seals, survive and thrive. The harbor seal pupping season starts now and continues through June. Northern elephant seal pups have just been weaned from their mothers, so they are learning to fend for themselves right about now, and you may also encounter them on the beach. As coastal ambassadors, you can help promote the Marine Mammal Center’s annual Leave Seals Be campaign by spreading the word to Coastside day-trippers and tourists about the following guidelines.

Elephant seal pup on a beach. Photo: The Marine Mammal Center

What to do if you come across a sick or abandoned seal on the beach:

1. Stay at least 50 feet away from the animal. The pup’s mother may be nearby.

2. Never handle a stranded marine mammal, and keep dogs and other people away.

3. Call the Marine Mammal Center’s 24-hour response hotline at 415-289-SEAL. You may want to program this number into your cell phone, so you have it handy. The center will dispatch trained volunteers who can assess the situation or monitor the pup to see if the mother returns, and conduct a rescue if needed. After careful assessment of several factors, the center may decide to observe the pup for 24-48 hours, since the ideal solution is a reunion between the pup and its mother.

Marine mammals bring us important news bites from the sea. They show us when the waters are compromised by pollution, harmful algal blooms or hazardous debris. They strand on our beaches like beacons warning us that things are not right with the ocean. We are all in this together, so it’s in our best interest to learn as much as we can about these creatures, heed the messages they deliver and protect their right to be wild.