The Seals of Sable

The Seals of Sable

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Sable Island is home to the world's largest breeding colony of grey seals. Every winter, thousands of female seals arrive to give birth to more than 80,000 pups. The pups will nurse for 17 days and increase their body mass by almost 2 kg per day.

Mature males stay close to the females, defending them from competing males. Towards the end of lactation, the female will enter "oestrous" and mate.
She will then leave her weaned pup and head to sea.

At this point, the pups, now called "weaners", begin to lose their white coats. They grow dense adult-like fur and remain on Sable Island for another three weeks. Pups born early in the season are the first to leave the beach. They will stay on the island for another three weeks and, with nothing to eat, they start slimming down. Now they must teach themselves how to swim and hunt for food.

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