Our Harbor Seals are excellent at many fun, energetic behaviors and Amelia is one of the best at dancing. She learned this behavior through targeting, which is one of the first steps to training the majority of the behaviors she knows. We started by asking her to touch--or target--one flipper to our hand and then used the other hand for the other flipper. We then increased the amount of times she touched flippers to hands. Over time we were able to back away from touching the flipper and then increase her distance from us in the water. This is a short explanation but the finished product is fun to see.

Amelia's ready for her Birthday Kiss. Happy 24th Birthday Amelia!!!

~Rochelle

One of the most popular questions the trainers hear is "How do you tell the harbor seals apart?" The answer sounds simple; just by looking at them, but it can take a long time if you don't see the seals every day.

-Erin

subscribe

Rochelle and I were the only two trainers on last week. With seven seals to feed you might think it would be difficult, but this is where those name targets come in handy. Each of us did two sessions with five seals at a time, which allowed the other trainer to focus on two. It was enriching for both us and the seals; you will notice that Rochelle and I didn't always feed the same animals or even line them up in the same order, but by using those name targets we were able to keep the five seals together calmly and give everyone the attention they deserved.


Here is Rochelle with (starting from the top) Trumpet, Lana, Smoke, Reggae, and Amelia.
Can you find all five targets?


In this picture I am working with (from the top) Cayenne, Chuck, Smoke, Reggae, and Lana. With the other four seals focusing on their name targets I am able to give Smoke some of her daily eye drops.

I wonder what today will bring?

-Erin

subscribe

Of course, there's nothing like dancing to get everyone moving!

So what do you like to do to stay active? Be sure to check back to see what new activities we are trying out and how the new exhibit is coming along.

One of the major hurdles in doing research on most marine animals is the fact that much of what they do and experience takes place under water. Even diving underwater to observe them is problematic because of our own physical limitations as well as the inherent dangers divers sometimes encounter.

In 1986, during a dive trip off Belize, a shark approached marine biologist and filmmaker, Greg Marshall. As the shark swam off, Marshall noticed a remora (sucker fish) attached to it. It occurred to Marshall that if he could replace the remora with an underwater video camera, he would be able to see first hand how a shark moves through and functions in its environment. Thus, the "Crittercam" was born.

In 1987 Marshall strapped the first awkward crittercam prototype to the back of a captive loggerhead turtle. Since then, crittercams have evolved from large and awkward systems into smaller, more hydrodynamic pieces of equipment. This new technology has provided scientists with an unprecedented look into the lives of all sorts of underwater creatures. Other versions of the crittercam have even been designed for and successfully deployed on terrestrial mammals such as bears and lions.

As we gradually work out the kinks and design problems in our crittercam system we'll give you the opportunity to get a "seal's eye view" of our exhibit and it's residents. If you're interested in learning more about "Crittercams" go to the National Geographic crittercam website and find out more about this exciting research tool and the look that it's given us into the "hidden" lives of all types of animals.


- Paul

We have had the opportunity to do a number of free swims with the harbor seals now, so I wanted to show you some of the interactions we have had.

Smoke showed interest even before I got in the water, then came by for a quick touch. Rochelle and Amelia played with the orange boomer ball, Lana checked out her favorite toy then Smoke came over for a good scratch from Justin. Cayenne, who has been a little shy about the free swim idea, swam close to take a closer look at Lindsay. We all agree that these free swims are not only enriching for the seals, but for the trainers as well!

-Erin

We have recently started free swims with the Atlantic harbor seals. What exactly is a free swim you ask? For us, it is any time a person is in the water with the seals outside of a training session or cleaning dive. We consider free swims to be a type of enrichment for the seals (and of course the trainers). Since it is very new and we want the seals to be comfortable with us hanging out in the exhibit, we will start by going in for short periods of time, taking a break, then going back in.



In this video, you can see Rochelle doing one of the first free swims with the seals. In her first short swim, Amelia comes right over to check her out. In the second swim, Rochelle has picked up a toy to see if anyone is interested and Chuck swims by while Cayenne checks her out from a distance (look at the top left corner). In the third swim, Trumpet checks her out from a distance. I wonder if they will come any closer?...Check back to see!

- Erin