Summary: Each spring and early summer at Goat Rock State Beach in Jenner, harbor seals gather on a sandy spit at the mouth of the Russian River to pup, nurse and mate, drawing visitors to a carefully managed viewing area. The Seal Watch program, run by Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods in partnership with California State Parks, trains volunteers to protect the rookery by maintaining a legal buffer under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Program coordinator Lisa Bilodeau explains how human and dog disturbance can cause mothers to abandon pups and shares the biology behind pupping season, from delayed implantation to rich milk that rapidly fattens newborns. The piece blends natural history with local stewardship, framing the rookery as a place where access depends on restraint.
Harbor Seal Nursery at Goat Rock, Where the River Meets the Sea
By Kathleen Scavone
SONOMA COAST, Calif. – On scenic Highway 1 north of Bodega Bay is Goat Rock State Beach, replete with dramatic rock formations and the ceaseless beauty of waves, seabirds and salt air. The sandy spit formed by the confluence of the Russian River at Goat Rock State Beach holds another form of fascination in Jenner, that of a harbor seal (Phoca vitulina) nursery during the months of March through July. This is when harbor seals pup, or give birth. Since harbor seals are wild and wary, they do not like to be too close to humans or dog; therefore, you will see an extensive area near the mouth of the river roped off with trained Seal Watch docents present to answer questions and assist in maintaining the buffer zone. The fat and photo-ready white, gray or tan pinnipeds gather here each spring to soak up the sun and rest in a group of about 50 in order to mate and nurse.
Lisa Bilodeau is the volunteer Seal Watch Program coordinator for the Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods. Bilodeau, who has held the position since 2021, explained that she oversees the training of volunteers to support the safe viewing of harbor seals and their pups and teaches the natural history of this special area to docents. She explained that the legal foundation for their work stems from the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, and that any act is illegal “Which would result in the disturbing or molesting of a marine mammal ... to interrupt the animal’s normal activities.”
Bilodeau said Seal Watch volunteers are trained by Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods and are unpaid employees of the California State Park System. More than two dozen volunteers work weekends from March to Labor Day.
“It was the 1970s, and Dian Hardy, who was an animal rights activist in contact with Greenpeace, along with many other concerned citizens of Sonoma County were shocked by a raw sewage release from the city of Santa Rosa into the Russian River,” Bilodeau said about the origins of the group. “This breech into the Russian River caused the seals to leave the Jenner rookery area, not to return until the waters ran clear once again.
“Hardy and friends began to monitor the rookery, which is where seal pups are born. They learned that human and dog contact was posing a threat to the large number of seals and their pups who congregate there and that the Jenner rookery is one of the largest seal rookeries in Northern California. Hardy and other concerned citizens back then decided to safeguard the seal habitat, and that’s when the Seal Watch Program that we know today began.”
Myriad facts prove these critters to be unique.
“I love the delayed implantation fact,” Bilodeau said. “Delayed implantation is a retardation of the embryonic development which occurs in many marine mammal species. The fertilized egg, or zygote, stays in a ball or blastula state of their development for one and a half to two months before it implants in the uterine wall to develop. This means that the pup is born in the best season for survival. It can give the mother seal extra time to get herself into good condition, too.”
Seal Lullaby by Rudyard Kipling (1865 – 1936) Oh! hush thee, my baby, the night is behind us, And black are the waters that sparkled so green. The moon, o'er the combers, looks downward to find us At rest in the hollows that rustle between. Where billow meets billow, there soft be thy pillow; Ah, weary wee flipperling, curl at thy ease! The storm shall not wake thee, nor shark overtake thee, Asleep in the arms of the slow-swinging seas.
Seals prefer to utilize the same breeding grounds for both mating and birth. Sexual maturity happens at 3 to 5 years for a female and 5 to 6 years for the bull, or male. Spring is the time of play between seal couples when they snarl, slap the water with foreflippers and writhe in the water. Seals give birth to their pups between March and July, and they require isolation from humans at this time. Harbor seals differ from sea lions, which have the ability to move easily on land. Seals are almost helpless on land, and if they are frightened by humans, dogs or boaters, nursing mothers may abandon their land-locked pups.
Bilodeau said the female seal nurses her young for up to eight weeks with the mammary teats that are located on her lower abdomen. The rich seal milk is mainly fat and water at 45% each, and it has 10% protein, which allows the pups to double their weight by the time they are weaned. After that they dine on shrimp, small rockfish and prawns.
The pups’ mortality is high throughout their first year due to predators such as sharks, killer whales and starvation or abandonment. Seals, which can be aged by their teeth, have a lifespan of around 29 years. Adult seals’ diets include squid, salmon, hake, hagfish, octopus, flatfish and more.
Asked why seals lie about on the beach for much of the time, Bilodeau said, “The term for that is known as hauling-out, and it is important to seals because this is when they rest and regulate body temperature. Pups can rest on the mother’s back, they’re hitchhikers! Pups swim right from birth.”
The secret life of a seal takes place underwater. They can hold their breath for 20 to 30 minutes as they dive more than 300 feet. The record dive, however, was recorded at 600 feet. Seals sleep on land but sometimes find it necessary to sleep in high-tide waters when they awaken frequently to breathe. Living in such a sandy environment has allowed them to develop glands that lubricate their eyes. They also have a protective membrane similar to an inner eyelid. Adult harbor seals weigh in at 175 to 300 pounds, with males weighing the most.
A visit to the western precipice of Sonoma County where two natural features meet is nature at its best. As the Russian River flows into the Pacific Ocean, rugged headlands and a craggy coastline more than reward beachcombers and picnickers alike for an unforgettable day trip.
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Kathleen Scavone, M.A., retired educator, is a potter, freelance writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora and Fauna Tour of a California State Park,” “People of the Water” and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She loves hiking, travel, photography and creating her single-panel cartoon, “Rupert.”
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