I want to revisit my amazing experience with a seal pup that took place last Sunday. Upon sharing this experience with my volunteer supervisor at the Seymour Center, I was informed that while my actions were not harmful, they were not in line with the guidelines set out by National Marine Sanctuaries. The hand book says:
Stay at least 50 yards away from wild animals. If wildlife approaches you, stay calm and slowly back away... Time spent observing individual animals should be limited to 30 minutes or less, if wildlife reacts to your presence....If a wild animal changes its behavior (i.e., stops feeding, appears nervous or aggressive, changes its direction of travel, raises its head sharply, exhibits a broken wing display, makes direct eye contact, or circles repeatedly), it may be an indication that your presence is disturbing the animal.
I now know that I was too close to the seal pup, a fact I had intuited at the time. While the pup seemed comfortable and content, my presence did affect its behavior. He looked at my repeatedly, which I found endearing, and may have wiggled around to show off. In this case, my presence did no harm, but I am glad to have learned the correct rules for marine mammal observation.
Lesson learned. Don't try this at home, kids.
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