Ano Nuevo State Park - MyParkPhotos.com, The Best Photography Community for Friends of Public Lands

Ano Nuevo State Park

California, United States

Pescadero

(831) 338-8866

http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=22264

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Trio of Elephant Seals © David Assmann

Ano Nuevo State Park, California, United States

Category: Wildlife
Date Shot: Wed, Mar 11, 2009

Camera: Panasomic DMC-FZ18
Lens: Lumix
Filter: None

Submitted: Thu, Sep 17, 2009
Viewed: 147 times
Rating: 2 ×

Member Comments:

This adorable trio of elephant seals watched carefully, without fear, as I walked past their resting spot.

About Property
Last Property Comments

Mark Dodge wrote on Wed, Jul 1, 2009 [ Send Email ]

This young, male Northern Elephant Seal is attempting to mate. He indicates his intention to the female by brute force. A larger wave came ashore and the female swam away as the water rose. This male was not a suitable champion for her. Female seals only mate with "successful" bulls. Most bulls never mate, due to the hierarchy established by combat between males for breeding rights. A sucessful bull could easily sire over 500 pups in a lifetime. Some quick facts: Average Male Size: Length= 14ft Weight= 5,000lbs. Average Female Size: Length= 11ft Weight= 1,400lbs. Max Recorded depth: 1603 meters (Nearly a mile). Average Dive Time: 20 minutes. Minimum Surface interval between dives: 3 minutes.

Mark Dodge wrote on Wed, Jul 1, 2009 [ Send Email ]

Mark Dodge wrote on Wed, Jun 24, 2009 [ Send Email ]

This male Northern Elephant seal was taking a nap along the South cove at Ano Nuevo State Park during mating season. You can tell this one is fairly young because of the lack of scar tissue about it's neck. Males fight each other over breeding rights. The younger males seek refuge away from the main part of the colony if they can't compete with the older males. This one is about 12 feet long.

Mark Dodge wrote on Tue, May 5, 2009 [ Send Email ]

This was taken one foggy evening in the southern cove of Ano Nuevo State Park. The marine layer pushes in each evening and can create some very dramatic scenery against the rugged coastline. Winter is one of my favorite times of the year to visit this area.

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