Seal Features and Highlights
Recent Prescott Grant Supporting Seal and Sea Lion Conservation Partners
Our marine mammal network partners leverage the Prescott Grant Program's competitive grants to improve their stranding response and investigation capabilities for pinniped conservation.
Our partners use competitive grants to improve pinniped conservation
Meet Makana—One of the First Hawaiian Monk Seal Pups of 2024
Spring and summer are two of our favorite seasons when it comes to Hawaiian monk seals. Why? Because it’s peak pupping season! Hawaiʻi Marine Animal Response partnered with Kahuku Elementary School to name the first Hawaiian monk seal pup of Oʻahu in 2024.
Meet one of the first Hawaiian monk seal pups of 2024
Some Research Takes a Lifetime—Like the Northern Elephant Seal
Long-term research under Marine Mammal Protection Act scientific research permits provides insight into northern elephant seal moms and pups.
Learn about northern elephant seal research in California
Podcast: Hawaiian Monk Seal Pupping Season
This is a special time of year in the Hawaiian Islands—it's pupping season for Hawaiian monk seals! March through August is peak pupping season and NOAA Fisheries experts in the Pacific Islands work with partners to protect the pups during this critical time.
Learn about Hawaiian monk seal pupping season
Life on an Active Volcano: Fur Seals Adapt to a Changing Landscape on Bogoslof Island
Biologists returned to Bogoslof Island—the tip of a 6,000-foot underwater volcano—for the first time in 4 years. When they returned, they found that the island and the distribution of northern fur seals on it were radically different. Read both parts of this series to learn how our scientists track the fur seal population on Bogoslof and the effects of recent eruptions and subsequent erosion.
Learn about northern fur seals on Bogoslof Island
Another Year Of Protecting A Precious Population
Hawaiian monk seal monitoring and recovery work in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument was marked by partnerships, pups, and promise in 2023.
Read about efforts to recover these endangered seals
Seals, Sea Lions, and Climate Change: Shifting Prey and Habitat Impacts
Several seal and sea lions species are sensitive to the impacts of climate change due to their dependence on specific environmental conditions during different times of the year. For example, ice seals need sea ice to rest, breed, nurse and rear pups, molt, and avoid predators. Less sea ice leaves them vulnerable to predators and other threats.
Learn more about the threat of climate change for several seal and sea lion species
Fun Facts About Surprising Seals
Want to know more about those cute bewhiskered seals? Look no further!
California Sea Lions as Ecosystem Indicators
California sea lions are outstanding ecosystem indicators because they consume a variety of forage species. Changes in their diet over time can be linked to changing ocean conditions that affect the availability of their prey. We've been studying their diet for 40 years by analyzing their scat (aka poop!).
Learn more about the connection between sea lion diet and climate change
Seal or Sea Lion?
Seals and sea lions are both pinnipeds, which means fin- or flipper-footed in Latin. Although seals and sea lions have similarities, they also have several distinct characteristics and adaptations that distinguish them from one another.
Learn how to tell seals and sea lions apart
6 Ways We Study Seals and Sea Lions
When it comes to studying seals and seal lions, these methods get a “seal of approval” from our scientists.
How we study seals and sea lions
An Entangled Web: Research Collaboration Unravels Causes and Consequences of Sea Lion Entanglements
Tracking individual sea lions helps reveal a toll on this species.
Research collaboration unravels causes and consequences of sea lion entanglements
Hawaiian Monk Seal Updates
Get the latest monk seal updates—including new pups, relocations, and seal rescues—from NOAA Fisheries in the Pacific Islands.
An Isolated Population of Antarctic Fur Seals Could Save the Species, but They’re Disappearing
Losing fur seals from the South Shetland Islands means losing crucial genetic diversity the species may need to adapt to rapid climate change.
Isolated population of Antarctic fur seals
Studying Northern Fur Seals in Remote Alaska
Scientists plan to further test drones to help conduct their research more efficiently.
Studying northern fur seals in remote Alaska
Seal Ecology and Assessment Research in the Northwest Atlantic
We study the ecology of seals in the Northwest Atlantic to support conservation management and promote public stewardship of a healthy and diverse marine environment.
Read about seal research in the Northwest Atlantic
Share the Shore with Seals
Please, No Selfies with the Seals: 6 Ways to View Wildlife Responsibly
Although it can be tempting to try to get close to marine animals, it’s always best to view them from a safe and respectful distance, for their safety—and yours. Learning how to interact with and observe ocean animals can help you make the right decisions when you encounter them by water, land, or air.
6 Ways to View Wildlife Responsibly
Sharing Seal Space by the Seashore: Introduction to the Greater Atlantic Marine Mammal Stranding Network
Explore the story map, which shows seal strandings in the Greater Atlantic Region and highlights the organizations that provide emergency response and rehabilitation for stranded seals.
Sharing seal space by the sea shore story map
