Leu behind the scenes of the marine mammal center

Flaherty shows off his handsome flippers

Leu and Flaherty were always close companions—almost since day one—so it made sense that they would go together. Of course, we miss "the boys" dearly. But part of creating a genetically healthy populations of Northern fur seals means sometimes the animals must move around to accommodate breeding pairs. The hope is that Commander and Ursula will have pups someday.

Flaherty was born at the New England Aquarium in 2012. Look at what a chunkster he was as a pup!

Leu is always up for some fun, including trick or treating for some fish.

If you're ever in Seattle, pop in to visit old friends like Leu and Flaherty at the Seattle Aquarium!

Here are some classic blog posts about the boys—Leu and Flaherty:

• See how much Leu grew while living at the New England Aquarium
• Wonder if Leu will miss all the snow we got this winter?
• Leu is a smart fellow who learned how to toss a Frisbee 
• See how Flaherty disrupted training programs back in the day 
• Watch frisky Leu and Flaherty romp on exhibit 
• Leu and Flaherty, at it again
• Flaherty's birth announcement...awwwwwww

Male Northern fur seals grow at an incredible rate, and our male Leu is no exception. He came to us in June of 2012 at approximately nine months of age and he weighed only 29 lbs. His tiny size was due to the fact that he was found stranded as a very young pup along the coast of California. If you have been following our Marine Mammal Trainers Blog, you may remember the videos we showed you of Leu as a baby. He was missing some patches of guard hair but even then he was such a good looking little guy. The video below shows his first introduction to our behind the scenes area. Look at how cute he is!


Video from June 2012

Since that video was taken, Leu has been growing in leaps and bounds. As a growing animal he takes lots of naps and his favorite places to sleep are in the turtle pool and on our tactile toy in our holding room. Here are some pictures taken over the past two years.

November 2014

November 2014

Leu, a rescued Northern fur seal

Leu dove right into the activity, snarfing small fish and squid from the jack-o-lantern

Leu even stuffed his whole head into the pumpkin, and then tried to dribble the gourd into the water!

Zoe, California sea lion

Zoe did not enjoy playing with the pumpkins as much, until...

... the pumpkin splashed into the water. Then there were some curious pumpkin bobbers!

You may not know that Leu the Northern fur seal LOVES to play catch (just like our sea lion ladies). It's a game he's been playing since he arrived 2012. I thought it would be fun to see if he could hone those tossing skills and play a friendly game of Frisbee with me.



In no time, he had a signature throw down! Even if it happens to fall, Leu will pick it up quickly and send it back to me. This has been in the works for just a few days —see how good he already is! He'll be ready for ultimate in no time...

Maybe Leu is dreaming of Frisbees

-Lindsay

You're a grand ol' seal! Photo: Lindsay Jones

It's Wednesday, the middle of the traditional work week known as Hump Day. Sometimes it can be difficult to get over the hump. Hang on, weekend is almost here!

Leu naps on his favorite enrichment item

To get you through the day, here's a picture of Leu—our rescued fur seal—napping on his favorite enrichment item. It's a half barrel textured with brushes and hoses and floor mat material. You can also call it a hump. Enrichment toys and activities are a great way to keep our marine mammals' brains and bodies active. Of course, here it's also providing a cozy place to rest. Whatever works for you, buddy!

Many of us find ourselves glued to the events in Sochi right now. It's inspiring to see lithe athletes in their prime, pushing the limits of artistry and gravity. After all, Fitness Friday is a highlight of our week here at the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center. So with the Olympics on our minds, it's not hard to imagine the seals and sea lions in similar acrobatic endeavors.

Zoe practices skeleton

The sea lions and fur seals have lots of toys available to them for enrichment purposes. Sometimes we put jello in these big dishes, sometimes a sea lion squeezes herself into one. We thought Zoe looked like a skeleton slider (minus the icy track and break-neck speeds)!

Leu finds a missing Olympic ring

Meanwhile, Leu, our rescued Northern fur seal, found a missing Olympic ring. He found it a nice place for a mid-play nap.

Come visit these animals when they're up to their Olympic antics in the main exhibit! Whether it's snowy or sunny, these animals are right at home in the marine mammal center. Get front row seats to watch these clever marine animals slide, splash and interact with their trainers. (Psst...save time and buy your tickets online!)

Find out other ways our seals and sea lions stay active (and rested):
The fur seal pups—Kit and Chiidax—have fun on a snow day

• Seals and sea lions play with bubbles
• Zoe and Sierra exercise their problem solving skills
• And then they find time for some frisking in the sprinkler
• The harbor seals got in on the mental action
• When the play is all through, everyone needs a rest

Each seal here at the New England Aquarium has its own personality. Some are more curious than others and some seem to enjoy exploring new places.

The fur seals in the marine mammal center all have very distinct personalities.

This sense of adventure can sometimes lead to interesting situations.

Leu, a two year old juvenile Northern Fur seal, likes to play with jello, snow and his fellow juvenile Flaherty.  Here, Leu gets into his own brand of mischief when he sneaks behind the scenes…


Thankfully, Leu gave us the dive mask back after showing off his find to Sierra, one of our California sea lions.

-Marie

Do they know they are looking at themselves? Do they think it's another animal? You decide.

JELL-O! Check out Leu as he enjoys a game of catch with some solid pieces of gelatin. Stay tuned for another blog showing our sea lions joining in on the fun as well!









~Patty

What's one of the best things about winter? Snow days of course!

Check out how Leu, a Northern fur seal, and California sea lions, Zoe and Sierra, spend their snow days. Here's Leu's version of a snowball fight.



Press play to see Zoe and Sierra get a taste of winter.




Snow has provided enrichment for our marine mammals before. Watch Ursula romp in the snow on the deck.

Leu, our rescued Northern fur seal, loves to zip around the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center playing with his friend Flaherty. But as you can see from the video below, young Leu has always been up for playing with whatever is handy.

It's always more fun to get your exercise with friends than by yourself. At least our Northern fur seal pups, Leu and Flaherty, seem to feel that way. In the video below, you can see the two youngsters playing a kind of king of the hill game in the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center, with Flaherty on deck and Leu in the water. The two are pushing and shoving much like seals and sea lions do in the wild.

In this video, Flaherty is trying to defend the high ground of the deck. See what happens and who ends up being king of the deck.



As you can see, this jousting involves open-mouth playful grabs and lunges. You could say it's the seal version of arm wrestling and probably helps them learn how to protect themselves and their territory. You can also see who gets the last laugh—Isaac!

Leu and Flaherty play in the water and on land

If you've visited the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center recently, you've seen Leu, our young rescued fur seal, porpoising through the water with fluid grace, frolicking on the rocks and sending balls zipping across the deck with a quick flick of his flipper. Leu definitely has some moves!

But Leu didn't come to the Aquarium with his fancy flipper work. As you can see in this video, Kathy is working patiently with Leu to develop those skills. And like most of us, Leu had to do a lot of practicing before he started looking like he could take the field with the Revolution.

One of our little guys is joining the big kids at school! Leu has started working with trainers to learn some new skills. These training sessions are as much to keep the seals and sea lions active and fit as to keep their brains sharp. Leu is practicing the limbo with Paul right now.



This limbo skill isn't simply a fun activity. It's one piece of an obstacle course that we like to show off on Fitness Fridays. Maybe you remember our Northern fur seals competing against people in some obstacle course challenges? Little by little, Leu will learn the skills and he'll be able to compete in the races, too.


Not quite, Leu. Try again.


That's it! Good boy!

We talk a lot about the sea lions and their antics. But they're not the only youngsters! Leu (the Northern fur seal pup rescued earlier this year) and Flaherty (the pup born to Ursula in July) are growing up and testing out their new-found strength on the deck and in the water.



Play is an important part of an active lifestyle. Sometimes it means being on a sports team, sometimes it means just kicking the ball around with a friend. If you're a fur seal, it means rough housing, pretending you're an adult male fur seal protecting your territory.



For Leu and Flaherty, play continues until they get tired or Flaherty's mom, Ursula, breaks things up (as you saw in the video). He's is still a baby protected under her watchful eye. But Flaherty's growing fast. If you want to see this little guy before he grows to be as big as his dad Isaac, you better come visit the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center!

As you probably gathered from the video posted in this entry, our youngest fur seals—Flaherty and Leu—are best buddies. They play with each other all day long (when they're not napping, that is, puppies have to nap). The fur seal pups get into all sorts of activities, like running, swimming, playing king of the rock. Well... you'll see. Just check out our home movies.


On Fitness Fridays we like to point out ways our marine mammals are staying active. Running, swimming and playing are all parts of an active lifestyle, which is a key part of staying healthy. Here at the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center, we start that healthy lifestyle young.

High five!

Newborn Flaherty from earlier this summer. He's much bigger now, but just as adorable!

Our new baby fur seal has been exploring the main exhibit at the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center recently. Flaherty (who got his name from Walter Flaherty, the Aquarium's VP and COO) is still pretty young—not yet two months old—and weighs in at only 27 pounds. He's still getting his sea legs, too, so to speak. Sometimes it takes him a while to get up the courage to take the plunge. Take a look.



Like our little pup, sometimes it takes a little mental pep-talk to take the leap into an exercise routine. Just remember it's all worth it in the end. Whee!

After a good work-out, there's nothing like a relaxing shower—even if you're a sea lion! Zoe and Sierra enjoy a good hose down after a training session with Kathy. Even Leu, the Northern fur seal, gets in on the action. Ahhhh...



In all seriousness, the young sea lion and fur seal pups love to play around with the hose. It's not because they're thirsty, it's actually a form of enrichment. Sea lions get all the hydration they need from the fish they eat. So they are probably enjoying the feeling of the spray on their thick coats or tickling their throats. And who doesn't on a hot summer day!

It's hard to believe that fall is right around the corner when we're still sweating through scorching summer heat here in New England. But that just means there's still time to have fun in the water!


The fountains on the Greenway are a fun way to cool off in the summer!

After leaving the cool, shady Aquarium, many visitors head straight over to the Rose Kennedy Greenway fountains. Not only do they provide a little escape from the heat, they're a really fun way to get active!

Zoe and Sierra like to mess around with their own kind of water fountain — a regular old garden hose. Watch how they romp and engage with this refreshing toy with Leu, the Northern fur seal pup.




Whether you're a kid or a sea lion, dashing through sprinklers and fountains is a great way to stay active and cool in the summer.