New York Times: How California's Elephant Seals Made a Remarkable Recovery
- Natural history
Hunted nearly to extinction, northern elephant seals, native to the waters off the West Coast, now number more than 175,000.
Published in The New York Times: March 16, 2023
Before summiting the slippery beachside dunes, wind-whipped sand spraying my face, I could hear what was on the other side.
Raspy grunts, high-pitched mews, guttural barks and the occasional roar bellowed toward my group of hikers at Año Nuevo State Park, a remote strip of coastal bluffs about 60 miles south of San Francisco. Once we crossed over to the wide sandy beach, the source of the commotion became obvious: hundreds of elephant seals, their slick blubbery bodies splaying out on the land or flopping into the chilly waters of the Pacific.
header image: photo © Luiza Naslausky
Yes, I want to save a life!
Yes, I want to save a life!
You’ll be giving sick and injured animals the best possible care at the Center’s state-of-the-art hospital. With your gift today, you are giving a patient a second chance at life in the wild.
See Our Latest News
{"image":"\/Animals\/Wild\/Sea otter\/cropped-images\/sea-otter-shutterstock-118-0-2496-1950-1604015482.jpg","alt":"sea otter eating clams","title":"What Do Sea Otters Eat? And Other Otter Trivia","link_url":"https:\/\/www.marinemammalcenter.org\/news\/what-do-sea-otters-eat-and-other-otter-trivia","label":"News Update","date":"2023-09-21 02:00:00"}
{"image":"\/Animals\/Patients\/Rescues\/cropped-images\/csl-grazer-pre-rescue-photo-c-the-marine-mammal-center-515-229-784-612-1694454282.jpg","alt":"California sea lion on a sandy beach with flippers tucked to abdomen","title":"San Francisco Chronicle: Why Sick Sea Lions are Washing Up on the California Coast","link_url":"https:\/\/www.marinemammalcenter.org\/news\/san-francisco-chronicle-why-sick-sea-lions-are-washing-up-on-the-california-coast","label":"In the News","date":"2023-09-09 02:00:00"}
San Francisco Chronicle: Why Sick Sea Lions are Washing Up on the California Coast
September 9, 2023
Read More{"image":"\/Animals\/Patients\/Elephant seals\/2022\/cropped-images\/es-talos-photo-by-bill-hunnewell-c-the-marine-mammal-center-206-6-3105-2426-1695407549.jpg","alt":"northern elephant seal Talos","title":"Next Avenue: The Marine Mammal Center Rescues, Treats and Releases Injured Animals","link_url":"https:\/\/www.marinemammalcenter.org\/news\/next-avenue-the-marine-mammal-center-rescues-treats-and-releases-injured-animals","label":"In the News","date":"2023-08-25 02:00:00"}
Next Avenue: The Marine Mammal Center Rescues, Treats and Releases Injured Animals
August 25, 2023
Read More{"image":"\/Animals\/Patients\/Releases\/cropped-images\/csl-quly-left-and-togozees-release-by-bill-hunnewell-c-the-marine-mammal-center-90-0-3996-3122-1693421090.jpg","alt":"two California sea lions are released in front of a crowd of people","title":"NPR Morning Edition: Hundreds of Seals and Sea Lions Are Treated Each Year at The Marine Mammal Center","link_url":"https:\/\/www.marinemammalcenter.org\/news\/npr-morning-edition-hundreds-of-seals-and-sea-lions-are-treated-each-year-at-the-marine-mammal-center","label":"In the News","date":"2023-08-18 02:00:00"}
NPR Morning Edition: Hundreds of Seals and Sea Lions Are Treated Each Year at The Marine Mammal Center
August 18, 2023
Read MoreAdam Ratner
Northern Elephant Seal