Fur seal spotted on Papamoa Beach

The seal playing in the surf. Photo Holger Pfab.

A man who recently moved to Papamoa from Germany had close encounter with the local marine life when he took his kids for a walk on Papamoa Beach.

Holger Pfab, who has lived here since February, took his children for an afternoon walk on Sunday and saw a NZ fur seal (kekeno) playing in the surf.

Before the arrival of humans a population of about two million fur seal/kekeno inhabited New Zealand, wrote Rosalie Liddle Crawford on the Papamoa Facebook page following the sighting.

'In 1978 fur seal/kekeno were fully protected by the Marine Mammals Protection Act, and they have continued to grow in numbers ever since.”

On average, they live 14 to 17 years.

Females will have their pup between 4 and 6 years of age, and continue giving birth to a single pup every year until their death.

The breeding season takes place from mid-November to mid-January. During this time, seals mate and females give birth to their pups.

'In general seals and sea lions should be enjoyed from a distance without interference. Even if you think a seal needs help, never handle a fur seal yourself as they can act unpredictably and carry disease. You might also unintentionally cause stress to the animal.”

- Always stay at least 20 m from seals. - Allow them space if they are active.

- Never walk between a seal and the sea. Head inland.

- Do not disturb seals. Don't make loud noises or throw objects in their vicinity.

- Always keep dogs and small children under control and away from seals.

- Never attempt to touch or handle a seal. They can be aggressive if threatened.

- You can also catch diseases from seals through their skin, sneezes, coughs and barks, and you may also carry diseases that can transfer to them and make them ill.

- Do not feed any seal.

Fur seals may look sick when they're actually just resting.

Call the DOC hotline 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468) if you see a kekeno that is:

- severely injured

- entangled in marine debris

- being harassed by people or dogs.

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1 comment

What if...

Posted on 21-08-2017 16:25 | By maildrop

...it looks sad and like it's crying? Call DOC?


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