Phoca vitulina
General description:
This seal is the smaller of the two species likely to be met with around Norfolk. It has a small rounded head and often adopts a characteristic ‘head-up, tail-up’ attitude when hauled out. Its main habitats are estuaries such as the Wash, sandbanks and spits, such as Scroby Sands off Great Yarmouth and Blakeney Point. Most pups are born at such intertidal haul-out sites during June and July. The population of Common Seals is not static and regular counts from Blakeney Point over the last 10 years have shown numbers declining. Although these populations were hit by virus outbreaks in 1988 and 2002 other unknown factors may be responsible.
Text: Francis Farrow