In 2009 I took a series of photographs of grey seals in Cornwall.  I’d recently been looking, sorting and eventually published a few here.  I’ve taken photos of grey seals around the UK and further afield on the coasts of the North Atlantic but these are still about the best set and time I’ve spent watching grey seals.  

I’m back in Cornwall again and two days ago I spent a couple of hours watching grey seals again.  Time well spent in the sun on the top of the cliffs at the Lizard Point watching them through binoculars on offshore rocks at low tide.  Too far away to photograph but close enough to enjoy and share with a German family who were holidaying and trying to spot seals (they camouflage pretty well on the wet dark granite offshore rocks).  

Yesterday, we borrowed a boat and returned to where I’d photographed the seals in 2009.  A very low tide and fine weather.  But, on this occasion only two seals were present; a male and a female.  I, of course, took some photographs although they spent most of the time studiously ignoring us and resting.  However, I quickly realised I’d seen the female before.  She had very distinctive scars on her belly and these were the same as one of the seals I’d seen in the 2009 photographs.  It’s not exactly surprising, seals can stay in the same area and have a lifespan of some 15 to 35 years (depending on which source you read).  But it’s good to see the same animal six years later.  She is now a bit larger but was sporting a more recent injury, a missing claw tip on her right flipper.  I’ve idea what caused the original scaring.  It might be fishing line or netting or perhaps a boat prop.  However, none of those obviously match the pattern of the marks.  Notwithstanding, she seems healthy and robust.   

Taken in 2009

Now again in 2015