Tag: seal
Travel Tuesday: I see you
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A loving couple
A loving couple during their mating season in mid winter.
More of my images can be seen at my own blog.
Travel Tuesday: waiting
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Travel Tuesday: attack!!!
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Travel Tuesday: Knieper
“Knieper” is lower German for “Kneifer” which is the noun for the verb “kneifen” (to nib oder to pinch).
I stumbled upon the crab per incident on the beach of Helgoland. They live in the Northern Atlantic and the North Sea. They are able to bring some water in their body to be able to “breath” when outside the water.
Although, I knew this species, I never met such a huge one before. It’s size was approximately of a DIN A4 sheet of paper (~30×21 cm). According to wikipedia, that’s nearly the maximum size.
He was still alive and I don’t know, why he left the ocean. Maybe, he was originally caught by a seal and then left alone. Who knows. I was glad about the finding.
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Travel Tuesday: I see you!
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Monochrome Madness 4-51
It’s still coupling season for the grey seals. So, this big male tries to convince the smaller female below him to give him a try 🙂 Despite this looks like a fight, it wasn’t.
This is my contribution to Monochrome Madness organized by Leanne Cole for more than four years now. Look at here site on Wednesday (Australian time), to see many more monochrome images created by many other talented photographers from all over the world.
I’d also encourage you to participate. The conditions are published in each of her Monochrome Madness posts.
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Travel Tuesday: looking back
In this image you can see another part of the concrete wall saving the foot of the red sand stone cliffs of Helgoland from the sea.You can also see the higher parts of the only town (more a village) of Helgoland and the 4 landmarks: the chimney of the heating plant, the church tower, the lighthouse and the radio tower (left to right). Above the island we have a fantastic colourful sky. Try to guess the time 🙂 It’s 9:32 a.m.!! in mid January. I really love the colors.
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Travel Tuesday: common seal
In the past, I’ve shown you some images of grey seals. Today, I have a common seal for you.
Common seals are smaller than grey seals. Males are approximately 170 cm, females 140 cm and weight 150 respectively 100 kg).
While grey seals are curious and sociably, common seal are shy and solitary. Grey seals are laying in groups together, while common seals keep a distance of 2 or 3 meters to each other, whenever possible. They are stressed when a sand bench is too full.
Gray seals get their babies during winter and they don’t cry when left alone by their mother for hunting. Common seals instead, get their babies in summer and these are the ones, called howler (abandoned seal pup).
While grey seals choose beaches for resting, common seals prefer sand benches for resting. But, sand benches are usually only usable during low tide. At high tide, the sand benches are usually under water. Other then grey seals, common seal babies are born with the ability to swim. Birth size and weight are 85 cm and 10 kg. So, that’s not a problem to react to high tide. They are fed by their mother for about 5 weeks and than left alone.
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Travel Tuesday: adolescent seal
This young grey seal isn’t a baby anymore. Compare the image with the one I posted last week. Although, it still has its baby fat, it already has changed fur and is ready to start to live alone. Since the mother left the baby at an age of 3 or 4 weeks, it is alone. Someday, when hunger comes, it is ready to go in the sea and start to learn hunting fish. Pay attention to the teeth: it’s a predator!
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Travel Tuesday: baby seal
Do you remember the image I showed you six weeks ago? The image of a new-born seal.
Today, I have another baby for you. But, this one is a ‘bit’ older. It’s born on January 2nd and the photo is taken on January 17th. So, it’s two weeks old. Compare the two images. Gray seals get fed with milk by their mother for only 3 – 4 weeks. Every day their weight rises enormously. They weigh 10 – 15 kg at birth. Every day, the weight increases by 1-2 kg. After that, the mother leaves them alone at the beach. Their fur changes from the soft white to the ticker grey fur, dense enough to swim. The babies can’t go swimming as long as they have their white fur. After changing fur, as an adolescent they are able to go in the water and start learning hunting on their own.
Take care!
Monochrome Madness 4-43
This is my contribution to Monochrome Madness organized by Leanne Cole. Look at here site on Wednesday (Australian time), to see many more monochrome images created by many other talented photographers from all over the world.
I’d also encourage you to participate. The conditions are published in each of her Monochrome Madness posts.
Take care!
Travel Tuesday: I’m back …
Last week I was on Helgoland again. For the third time (after 2011 and 2016), I met with some friends in January on Helgoland.
You could ask, why I travel to the North Sea in mid winter. It’s dark, wet, cold and the sea is rough. Only very few people find their way to Helgoland during winter. In summer, it’s a destination for yachtsmen and day tourists for duty-free shopping. But, in winter?????
We’re going there for seeing nature, animals (birds and seals). The grey seals get their babies during winter. While the first wild grey seal was born in winter 1996/97, there were about 100 babies in 2011. 2016 there were already more than 316 and this year more than 426 babies from October 1st until January, 21st (when we left Helgoland).
The baby in the above image was born only a few hours ago.
Although, these animals look so cute. Keep in mind, they are the most dangerous animal in Germany. A male wights up to 300 kg and is much quicker on the beach than a human. So, many signs advise the visitors to pay much attention and keep a distance of at least 30 m between you and a seal. Winter is not only the season for giving birth, it’s als mating season. So, you can also see some fights between the adults (also there are fewer fights in January, because both, birth and mating season have reached their end).
Fortunately, most of the visitors behave good. But, every time you can see some people behaving very bad: going too close, standing between mother and baby, standing between animal and the see and so on. You got the picture. I guess, one day a seal could attach such a rude and ruthless human and I fear, that animal will be killed because of that. Next, they will be declared as too dangerous, and no-one will be allowed to visit them so easy.
During the 1970 they were completely exterminated in the whole Deutsche Bucht (German Bight). From the late 1980s they re-conquered a sandbank near Amrum. That sandbank became a bridgehead for repopulating the German Bight again. Recently, I saw a report saying there were more than 12,000 grey seals in the German Bight again.
Grey seals don’t attack humans. As long as you keep the distance, they stay calm. They look at you when you come nearer to check up the situation, but calm down again very easy. When they think, they are in danger, they start to hiss loud and show their teeth. A male might try to come a bit nearer to you (a few steps), but generally they tend to flee instead to attack.
Take care!
P.S. when interested, I could help you to arrange a visit next winter 🙂
Throwback Thursday: newborn grey seal
Jan. 20th, 2011
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Throwback Thursday: seals
Jan. 24th, 2016
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Monochrome Madness 2-42
Today, I’m a little bit in a hurry. So, I’m not writing much about the images. It’s a gray seal from last week. Look at my last post for a few more info. This is my entry for Leanne Coles Monochrome Madness this week.
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I’m back …
… from another re-visit: I was on Helgoland again.
I met with some friends on Helgoland and so I don’t edited many photos up to now. Nevertheless, I assembled a gallery of images for you. 🙂 It’s attached at the end of this post, as usual.
You know, during winter the gray seals get their babies – right in the winter here in the northern hemisphere. And we went, to see the babies 🙂
Unfortunately, the baby season was short this winter: nearly all of the seals gave birth during November and December 😦 Thus, they already left their babies alone, because they don’t need mother-milk anymore. So, we found several groups of adult seals and groups of growing children resting on the beaches. That’s not, what we expected to see, although they have had a very hight rate of new-born seals this winter: over 300 new-born gray seals in one season!
Luckily, we were able to watch two late nativities last week: #315 arrived on Wednesday and #316 on Thursday. A new record!
Here on Helgoland we have many free-living gray seals. They are the biggest free-living predator in Germany. An adult weights about 300 kg (> 660 pounds). They are here at home and allow us, to visit them. No fences between them and us and no fence to keep them from running away. They come and go following their own decision. As long as we behave properly, they will stay and don’t harm anyone.
But, there is much more to see. We were able to watch lots of guillemot in the cliffs of the main island (Helgoland has a small side-island called Düne, where you can find the seals) and even some northern gannets. Wow! They came very, very early to their breeding place this year. Helgoland is well-known for being an important breeding place of the guillemots.
Although, it’s winter now, we have had fantastic weather for taking photographs. Only one day with snow and hail storms, while the other days were sunny, but cold. Temperatures below 0°C, and a moisture of nearly 100%. Thus, it felt way colder, than it really was. Nevertheless, we were outside all day, despite the weather. But, we have had fantastic natural light – for the seals and much more for the birds. It will last a few weeks for choosing and editing these fantastic photographs.
Just in case, anyone of you is interested in attending a seal photographing workshop during next winter, drop me a line. I’m considering to offer a 2 or 3 day workshop for a max of 5 participants (minimum 3). You’ll be faced to a fantastic island with high cliffs and soft beaches, fresh air without traffic pollution (only electric cars are allowed on Helgoland), friendly people and the really amazing animals.
Helgoland and Düne are parted by water, crossed by a ferry several times a day. Once, both islands were Helgoland. The people from Hamburg used Helgoland as a stone pit to build their city from the red sand stone. A very heavy storm broke the small remain between the two parts of Helgoland and left two islands.
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