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43-469: The aquarium features harbor seals , river otters , sharks , jellyfish , loggerhead turtles , and hundreds of other animals living in re-creations of their natural Long Island Sound habitats. Three touch-tanks feature stingrays , nurse sharks , crabs , sea stars , moon jellyfish and other coastal creatures. In addition to its exhibits, The Maritime Aquarium offers educational programs, year-round cruises on its 64-foot research vessel R/V Spirit of

86-601: A few landmarks named for them during colonization: Robbin's Reef, off of Bayonne, New Jersey, gets its name from the Dutch word robben, meaning " seals ". On the border between Canada and the US is an island known as Machias Seal Island , a place where today the harbor seal will occasionally visit but is now a sanctuary for puffins. Over the course of hundreds of years, however, the seal was wiped out steadily by being shot on sight by fishermen and by massive pollution. The evidence for this

129-467: A flurry of collecting trips, including at Sodus Bay , and in Illinois, Michigan, and Indiana. Upon his return to Massachusetts, he took the position of curator of birds and mammals at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology . In the winter of 1868–1869, he was one of two ornithologists, the other being Charles Johnson Maynard , to explore the relatively unknown state of Florida, which was still very much

172-407: A foraging area. Males may fight over mates under water and on land. Females bear a single pup after a nine-month gestation, which they care for alone. Pups can weigh up to 16 kg (35 lb) and are able to swim and dive within hours of birth. They develop quickly on their mothers' fat-rich milk, and are weaned after four to six weeks. The global population of harbor seals is 350,000–500,000, but

215-910: A hundred miles upstream into fresh water in large rivers in search of migratory fish like shad and likely salmon . Resting sites may be both rugged, rocky coasts, such as those of the Hebrides or the shorelines of New England , or sandy beaches, like the ones that flank Normandy in Northern France or the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Harbor seals frequently congregate in harbors, bays, sandy intertidal zones, and estuaries in pursuit of prey fish such as salmon , menhaden , anchovy , sea bass , herring , mackerel , cod , whiting and flatfish , and occasionally shrimp , crabs , mollusks , and squid . Atlantic subspecies of either Europe or North America also exploit deeper-dwelling fish of

258-473: A land of plenty and the water to be livable. Within sight of the New York skyline, known colonies of harbor seals are found on Hoffman and Swinburne Islands as well as portions of Red Hook and Staten Island , readily hauling out every from October until very early May. Known favorite foods of the seal are returning in grand numbers to New York Harbor as well as nearby New Jersey, from Raritan Bay all

301-417: A length of 1.85 m (6.1 ft) and a mass of up to 168 kg (370 lb). Blubber under the seal's skin helps to maintain body temperature. Females outlive males (30–35 years versus 20–25 years). Harbor seals stick to familiar resting spots or haulout sites, generally rocky areas (although ice, sand, and mud may also be used) where they are protected from adverse weather conditions and predation, near

344-848: A wilderness in the late 1860s. When he returned, he wrote a celebrated analysis of his trip entitled On the Mammals and Winter Birds of Eastern Florida, which was published in 1871. That same year he was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences . For the next few years, Allen ventured to the Great Plains , Rocky Mountains , and Dakota Territory on collecting trips for Harvard's museum. Except for an 1882 collecting trip in Colorado with fellow ornithologist William Brewster , Allen never went field collecting again, primarily because of his fragile health. Following

387-478: Is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere . The most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared seals, and true seals), they are found in coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Baltic and North seas. Harbor seals are brown, silvery white, tan, or gray, with distinctive V-shaped nostrils. An adult can attain

430-447: Is almost $ 42 million; it contributes approximately $ 25 million to Norwalk's economy every year. The aquarium's budget for the 2006–2007 fiscal year was about $ 10.7 million. More than $ 4 million came in from admissions, with 36 percent coming from out-of-state visitors. Demonstrating increasing regional appeal, out-of-state attendance revenue has increased 55% since 2002. Additional revenues are generated from educational programming fees,

473-484: Is dead center of its West Atlantic range, says that "New York is like their Miami resort." This refers to the habit of young seals leaving Cape Cod and even some Arctic waters to inhabit the harbor in winter. In 2018 the New York Post reported that the harbor is now "cleaner than it has been in 110 years," and since the first decade of the 21st century, the harbor seal has found the old turf of its ancestors to be

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516-446: Is found in documents all along the coast of New England which put a bounty on the head of every seal shot, as well as the accounts of harbormasters. New York City, when it was founded in the 1640s, was founded on top of an enormous estuary teeming with life that included the harbor seal. Oil in the 1800s started the process of pollution that was later compounded by even more toxic 20th century chemicals that included PCB 's and dioxin . By

559-585: Is no pinna (ear flap). An ear canal may be visible behind the eye. Including the head and flippers, they may reach an adult length of 1.85 m (6.1 ft) and a weight of 55 to 168 kg (120 to 370 lb). Females are generally smaller than males. There are an estimated 350,000–500,000 harbor seals worldwide. While the population is not threatened as a whole, the Greenland , Hokkaidō and Baltic Sea populations are exceptions. Local populations have been reduced or eliminated through disease (especially

602-454: Is not known, but thought to be polygamous . Females give birth once per year, with a gestation period around nine months. Females have a mean age at sexual maturity of 3.72 years and a mean age at first parturition of 4.64. Both courtship and mating occur under water. Researchers have found males gather under water, turn on their backs, put their heads together, and vocalize to attract females ready for breeding. Pregnancy rate of females

645-708: Is open to the public. In 2006, the aquarium became a partner with SeafoodWatch, a program that encourages consumers to make responsible seafood choices that have a low impact on the environment and promote sustainable fisheries . In February 2021, the aquarium replaced its now closed IMAX theatre with a new 4-D movie theatre. The Maritime Aquarium is approximately 140,000 square feet (13,000 m) and has more than 177,000 gallons of water in its live animal exhibits. On exhibit are more than 2,700 animals, representing in excess of 300 species. As of 2019, exhibits include "Just Add Water," "Journey with Jellies," "Harbor Seals," "River Otters," "Shark and Ray Touch Pool," "Ocean Beyond

688-480: Is remembered for Allen's rule , which states that the bodies of endotherms (warm-blooded animals) vary in shape with climate, having increased surface area in hot climates to lose heat, and minimized surface area in cold climates, to conserve heat. Allen was born in Springfield, Massachusetts , the son of Joel Allen and Harriet Trumbull. He studied and collected specimen of natural history early in life, but he

731-558: The Ray Touch Pool toward the Marine Lab, still tread on the original wood floors (under original wood beams) of the iron works. Occupying approximately 100,000 gross square feet, the first animal exhibits included harbor seals, Open Ocean and Touch Tank . The cultural section of the aquarium originally explored boat building and human exploration of the sea, but the boatbuilding activities were eliminated in early 2007. In

774-569: The kelp forest , harbor seals enhance species diversity and productivity. They are preyed upon by killer whales (orcas) and white sharks . Haul out sites in California include urban beaches and from time to time they can be seen having a nap on the beach in all of San Francisco Bay, which would include the conurbation of Richmond , Oakland , and San Francisco , the Greater Los Angeles area, which would include Santa Barbara ,

817-545: The phocine distemper virus ) and conflict with humans , both unintentionally and intentionally. Killing seals perceived to threaten fisheries is legal in Norway , and Canada , but commercial hunting is illegal. Seals are also taken in subsistence hunting and accidentally as bycatch (mainly in bottomset nets). Along the Norwegian coast, bycatch accounted for 48% of pup mortality. Killing or taking seals has been illegal in

860-578: The Maritime Aquarium has emphasized helping visitors understand the ecology of Long Island Sound and its watershed. The aquarium participates in and directs local scientific research on Long Island Sound's animal residents, including a counting and tagging program for horseshoe crab and annual counts of harbor seal. The Maritime Aquarium also helped create the Long Island Sound Biodiversity Database , which

903-600: The Sound , special events and camps. The Maritime Aquarium inspires people of all ages to appreciate and protect the Long Island Sound ecosystem and the global environment through living exhibits, marine science, and environmental education. The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk is one of Connecticut's top tourist attractions. Annual attendance averages 500,000 visitors, about 100,000 of whom are from New York state. The Maritime Aquarium's estimated statewide economic impact

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946-399: The Sound," Sea Turtles," and "Jiggle-a-Jelly." Harbor seals P. vitulina concolor ( DeKay , 1842) P. vitulina mellonae ( Doutt , 1942) P. vitulina richardii (Gray, 1864) P. vitulina stejnegeri ( J. A. Allen , 1902) P. vitulina vitulina ( Linnaeus , 1758) The harbor (or harbour ) seal ( Phoca vitulina ), also known as the common seal ,

989-784: The United Kingdom since 1 March 2021. Seals in the United Kingdom are protected by the 1970 Conservation of Seals Act , which prohibits most forms of killing. In the United States , the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 prohibits the killing of any marine mammals , and most local ordinances, as well as NOAA , instruct citizens to leave them alone unless serious danger to the seal exists. The California population of subspecies P. v. richardii amounted to about 25,000 individuals as of 1984. Pacific harbor seals or California harbor seals are found along

1032-803: The age and sex of the animal, with yearlings molting first and adult males last. A female mates again immediately following the weaning of her pup. Harbor seals are sometimes reluctant to haul out in the presence of humans, so shoreline development and access must be carefully studied, and if necessary managed, in known locations of seal haul out. In comparison to many pinniped species, and in contrast to otariid pinnipeds, harbor seals are generally regarded to be more vocally reticent. However, they do utilize non-harmonic vocalizations to maintain breeding territories and to attract mates during specified times of year, and also during mother and pup interactions. Annual survival rates were calculated at 0.91 for adult males, and 0.902 for adult females. Maximum age for females

1075-454: The area, had enormous tumors in their livers by the 1980s and the harbor seal was long gone, shot to oblivion. As of 2020, however, the seals have returned. They never were extirpated from Canada and certain pockets of the Maine coast, and thus an important mother population was created from whence the species could reclaim the home of their ancestors. Currently, they are sighted as far south as

1118-874: The barrier islands of North Carolina on a regular basis, with Massachusetts being the southernmost point of known pupping areas along the Atlantic Coast. Harbor seals move south from eastern Canadian waters to breed along the coast of Maine , Cape Cod , and the South Shore in Massachusetts in May and June, and return northward in fall. Others will head south from these areas to "vacation" in warmer waters, particularly young seals unable to compete with adults for food and territory; they do not return north until spring. One park ranger in New York City, which

1161-630: The city of Los Angeles itself, and Long Beach , and all of San Diego Bay , most famously beaches near La Jolla . Considerable scientific inquiry has been carried out by the Marine Mammal Center and other research organizations beginning in the 1980s regarding the incidence and transmission of diseases in harbor seals in the wild, including analysis of phocine herpesvirus . In San Francisco Bay , some harbor seals are fully or partially reddish in color, possibly caused by an accumulation of trace elements such as iron or selenium in

1204-556: The end of his field-collecting days, Allen dedicated his life to research and editorial publication. In the early summer of 1876, Allen was elected by the Nuttall Ornithological Club to replace Charles Johnson Maynard and Henry Augustus Purdie as editor of their Bulletin . In 1883, Allen, along with William Brewster and Elliott Coues , created the American Ornithologists' Union . Allen, who

1247-611: The entire Pacific Coast shoreline of the state. They prefer to remain relatively close to shore in subtidal and intertidal zones, and have not been seen beyond the Channel Islands as a pelagic form; moreover, they often venture into bays and estuaries and even swim up coastal rivers. They feed in shallow littoral waters on herring , flounder , hake , anchovy , codfish , and sculpin . Breeding occurs in California from March to May, with pupping between April and May, depending on local populations. As top-level feeders in

1290-498: The final seven years of its 19-year run, the boatbuilding program constructed about 500 boats, and 20,000 children took part in classes that created more than 5,000 model boats, but aquarium officials said the shop only served three to five percent of patrons. The boatbuilding shop was replaced with a new Marine Lab, with baby seahorses , jellyfish, and other new animals, as well as information on aquaculture , sustainable seafood, and responsible home aquarium keeping. In recent years,

1333-560: The freshwater subspecies Ungava seal in Northern Quebec is endangered. Once a common practice, sealing is now illegal in many nations within the animal's range. Individual harbor seals possess a unique pattern of spots, either dark on a light background or light on a dark. They vary in colour from brownish black to tan or grey; underparts are generally lighter. The body and flippers are short, heads are rounded. Nostrils appear distinctively V-shaped. As with other true seals, there

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1376-590: The genus Ammodytes as a food source and Pacific subspecies have been recorded occasionally consuming fish of the genus Oncorhynchus . Although primarily coastal, dives of over 500 m have been recorded. Harbor seals have been recorded to attack, kill and eat several kinds of ducks. Harbor seals are solitary, but are gregarious when hauled out and during the breeding season, though they do not form groups as large as some other seals. When not actively feeding, they haul to rest. They tend to be coastal, not venturing more than 20 km offshore. The mating system

1419-477: The gift shop, catering, business dinners, other events such as weddings, and donations. The state gave it a grant of $ 675,000 to promote tourism in 2007. The "Maritime Center" opened July 16, 1988. The name was changed to the "Maritime Aquarium" in July 1996 to emphasize the live animals featured there. It first opened by renovating a former 1860s iron works factory into an IMAX theater. Visitors, as they walk past

1462-400: The mother's rich, fatty milk and grow rapidly; born weighing up to 16 kilograms, the pups may double their weight by the time of weaning . Harbor seals must spend a great deal of time on shore when molting , which occurs shortly after breeding. This onshore time is important to the life cycle, and can be disturbed when substantial human presence occurs. The timing of onset of molt depends on

1505-709: The ocean, or a change in the hair follicles. Although some of the largest harbor seal pupping areas are found in California, they are also found north along the Pacific Coast in Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska. Large populations move with the season south along the west coast of Canada and may winter on the islands in Washington and Oregon. Pupping is known to occur in both Washington and Oregon as of 2020. People are advised to stay at least 50m away from harbor seals that have hauled out on land, especially

1548-447: The pups, as mothers will abandon them when there is excessive human activity nearby. Historically, the range of the harbor seal extended from the mouth of the St. Lawrence River and Greenland to the sandy beaches of North Carolina, a distance of well over a thousand miles (greater than 1600 km) Evidence of their presence in these areas is consistent with both the fossil record as well as

1591-543: The time of the 1972 Clean Water Act , New York Harbor was almost dead-almost no living thing could survive in it. Approximately 300 miles to the north, Boston Harbor was equally polluted. Raw sewage had been dumped in the harbor since the late 1800s and the stench of fecal matter in the Charles River was overpowering, as evidenced by the song " Dirty Water " by the Standells , written in 1966. Flatfish, abundant in

1634-610: The way down the entire Jersey Shore , with schools of mossbunker regularly attracting harbor seals, their cousins the grey seals, dolphins and, most recently, whales. Both the northern and southern shores of Long Island have a reliable population of harbor seals as well as greys, where they will take sand lance as well as some species of crab as part of their diet. The five proposed subspecies of Phoca vitulina are: Harbor seals prefer to frequent familiar resting sites. They may spend several days at sea and travel up to 50 km in search of feeding grounds, and will also swim more than

1677-467: Was 36 and for males 31 years. Joel Asaph Allen Joel Asaph Allen (July 19, 1838 – August 29, 1921) was an American zoologist , mammalogist , and ornithologist . He became the first president of the American Ornithologists' Union , the first curator of birds and mammals at the American Museum of Natural History , and the first head of that museum's Department of Ornithology. He

1720-559: Was 92% from age 3 to age 36, with lowered reproductive success after the age of 25 years. Birthing of pups occurs annually on shore. The timing of the pupping season varies with location, occurring in February for populations in lower latitudes, and as late as July in the subarctic zone. The mothers are the sole providers of care, with lactation lasting 24 days. The single pups are born well developed, capable of swimming and diving within hours. Suckling for three to four weeks, pups feed on

1763-605: Was forced to sell his relatively large collection so that he could attend the Wilbraham & Monson Academy in 1861. The following year, he transferred to Harvard University , where he studied under Louis Agassiz . In 1865, he took part in his mentor's 1865 expedition to Brazil in search of evidence of an ice age there, which Agassiz later claimed to have found. After returning to Massachusetts, chronic ill health caused him to return to his family farm in Springfield . By 1867, Allen's health had improved enough that he went on

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1806-627: Was one of the incorporators of the first Audubon Society , New York City . He was a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science , and of the American Philosophical Society . The hundreds of letters which Elliott Coues sent to him over many decades form one of the cornerstones of the history of American ornithology. Allen famously memorialized Coues in the pages of The Auk ,

1849-401: Was suffering ill health, was unable to attend their inaugural meeting, but was elected their first president, nonetheless. He also became the chief editor of their journal, The Auk . In 1885, he was appointed as the first curator of birds and mammals at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, later becoming the first head of the museum's Department of Ornithology. In 1886, he

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