Northern Elephant Seal
The northern elephant seal is the largest of the “true” seal in the Northern Hemisphere. Adult males use their large, inflatable noses during the winter breeding season to resonate sound when vocally threatening each other. The largest colonies of northern elephant seals are found off southern California in the Channel Islands. They have one of the longest migrations of any mammal, some have been recorded traveling over 13,000 miles roundtrip.
Northern elephant seals were once thought to be extinct due to commercial sealing in the 1800s. Populations of northern elephant seals in the U.S. and Mexico were all originally derived from a few hundred individuals surviving in Mexico. Its population began to steadily increase in the early 1900s.
Northern elephant seals, like all marine mammals, are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Though a complete population count of elephant seals is not possible because all age classes are not ashore at the same time, the most recent stock assessment reports with population estimates are available.
Northern elephant seal pups are black until they are weaned at about 6 weeks old and they molt and turn light silver. Adults are dark brown or gray.
When males reach puberty at about 7 years old, they develop a large inflatable nose, or "proboscis." The proboscis overhangs their lower lip by about 8 inches. They also develop a robust, thick neck that is heavily creased and lighter in color than their dark bodies. Conversely, females maintain their smaller noses and smooth necks.
Fully grown males can reach lengths of over 13 feet and can weigh nearly 4,400 pounds. Females are significantly smaller than males, but are also quite large growing to about 10 feet long and weighing up to 1,300 pounds.
Northern elephant seals have a diet of mostly squid and fishes, but also rays and sharks.
Northern elephant seals spend much of the year, generally about 9 months, in the ocean. They are usually underwater, diving to depths of about 1,000 to 2,500 feet for 20 to 30 minute intervals with only short breaks at the surface. They are rarely seen out at sea for this reason. While on land, they prefer sandy beaches.
They fast during mating season and can lose up to 36 percent of their body weight during this time. When molting occurs, they shed their short, dense fur along with large patches of old skin. Molting takes 4 to 5 weeks to complete.
Northern elephant seals are found in the eastern and central North Pacific Ocean. Though they range as far north as Alaska and as far south as Mexico, they typically breed in the Channel Islands of California or Baja California in Mexico. Northern elephant seals breed and give birth in California and Baja California, primarily on offshore islands from December to March. Males feed near the eastern Aleutian Islands and in the Gulf of Alaska, and females feed further south, in the offshore waters of Washington and Oregon. Adults return to land between March and August to molt, with males returning later than females. Adults return to their feeding areas again between the spring/summer molt and the winter breeding season.
World map providing approximate representation of the northern elephant seal's range.
NOAA Fisheries is committed to protecting northern elephant seals. Targeted management actions taken to protect these seals include:
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Consulting with federal agencies to ensure proposed actions are not likely to jeopardize elephant seals due to the effects of entanglement in fishing gear or other stressors.
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Minimizing harassment and illegal feeding.
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Overseeing marine mammal health and stranding response.
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Educating the public about northern elephant seals and the threats they face.
Our research projects have discovered new aspects of northern elephant seal biology, behavior, and ecology and helped us better understand the challenges that all elephant seals face. Our work includes:
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Population assessments.
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Vital rates (survival and reproduction).
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Foraging ecology.
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Diet studies.
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Health and condition.
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Disease and contaminants.
Report Marine Life in Distress
Report a sick, injured, entangled, stranded, or dead animal to make sure professional responders and scientists know about it and can take appropriate action. Numerous organizations around the country are trained and ready to respond.
Learn who you should contact when you encounter a stranded or injured marine animal >
Keep Your Distance
Be responsible when viewing marine life in the wild. Observe all seals and sea lions from a safe distance of at least 50 yards and limit your time spent observing to 30 minutes or less.
Report a Violation
Call the NOAA Fisheries Enforcement Hotline at (800) 853-1964 to report a federal marine resource violation. This hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days week for anyone in the United States.
You may also contact your closest NOAA Office of Law Enforcement field office during regular business hours.
This species is protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, as amended.
Northern elephant seals are protected throughout their range under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. NOAA Fisheries is working to protect this species in many ways, with the goal that populations remain stable and do not fall to depleted or threatened levels.
Northern elephant seal juvenile. Photo: NOAA Fisheries/Tony Orr.
Minimizing Harassment and Illegal Feeding
As human interactions with seals and sea lions increase, so does the risk of disturbing or injuring these animals. For seals and sea lions that rest on our beaches, close encounters with people are harmful. Continued disturbances may cause mothers to abandon their pups.
Learn more about how to safely and responsibly view seals and sea lions
Learn more about the rules regarding feeding and harassing marine mammals in the wild
Reducing Interactions with Fishing Gear
Northern elephant seals can get entangled in fishing gear, causing injury and possibly death. NOAA Fisheries is working to better understand and characterize the frequency, geographic extent, and magnitude of these interactions. We are also working with researchers to identify and evaluate ways to safely and effectively reduce the potential for these interactions.
Learn more about bycatch and fisheries interactions
Overseeing Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response
We work with volunteer networks in all coastal states to respond to marine mammal strandings. When stranded animals are found alive, NOAA Fisheries and its partners assess the animal’s health and try to return it to the water. When stranded animals are found dead—as is usually the case—our scientists work to understand and investigate the cause of death. Although the cause often remains unknown, scientists can sometimes identify strandings due to disease, harmful algal blooms, vessel strikes, fishing gear entanglements, pollution exposure, and underwater noise. Some strandings can serve as indicators of ocean health, giving insight into larger environmental issues that may also have implications for human health and welfare
Learn more about the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program
NOAA Fisheries conducts various research activities on the biology, behavior, and ecology of the northern elephant seal. The results of this research are used to inform management decisions and ensure stable population levels for this species.
Population/Stock Assessments
Determining the number of northern elephant seals in each population—and whether a stock is increasing or decreasing over time—helps resource managers assess the success of enacted conservation measures. Our scientists collect information and present these data in annual stock assessment reports.
Additional Research
Scientists in our Marine Mammal Laboratory conduct wide-ranging research on the biology, life history, and health of northern elephant seals including:
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Vital rates (survival and reproduction).
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Distribution and migration.
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Diet/foraging ecology.
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Threats such as disease, contaminants,and entanglement.
Learn about our northern elephant seal research
Northern elephant seal cools off in the sun with cold sand. Photo: NOAA Fisheries/Eric Boerner.
Pups are born in early winter from December to January. Breeding occurs from December to March, and gestation lasts around 11 months. Northern elephant seals are "polygamous”- males establish dominance over large groups of females during the breeding season.
There is a notable difference in lifespan between males and females. Females generally live for about 19 years, while males only live for about 13 years.
These animals are polygynous breeders with a social hierarchy. Males form harems usually when they are 9 to 10 years of age, battling for status. Adult males use their large, inflatable noses during the winter breeding season to resonate sound when vocally threatening each other.
Females come ashore and within a few days give birth to a pup conceived in the previous breeding season. The pups are weaned for about a month and just before her pup leaves she breeds again and then returns to sea.
Entanglement in Fishing Gear
Northern elephant seals can become entangled in fishing gear, either swimming off with the gear attached or becoming anchored. Once entangled, seals may drag and swim with attached gear for long distances, ultimately resulting in fatigue, compromised feeding ability, or severe injury, which may lead to reduced reproductive success and death.
Vessel Strikes
Inadvertent vessel strikes can injure or kill seals. The projected increase in ship traffic arising from the opening of trans-polar shipping routes (as arctic sea ice continues to decline) will increase the risk of vessel strikes, and also increase ambient noise and pollution.
MMPA Protected
- Throughout Its Range