Smoke mid-molt

At the New England Aquarium, Atlantic harbor seals molt July/August, California sea lions molt Sept/Oct, and the Northern fur seals molt Oct/Nov. It is most obvious on the harbor seals, as you can see patches of old and new hair.  

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

Usually the kiddie pools in our Northern fur seal exhibit are used for enrichment with the younger seals and pups, like this ice adventure with Leu:



But yesterday, Isaac decided to borrow one!


Looks like it's not quite deep enough for him to practice his speed swimming. This seems to be a first for Isaac. Occasionally Cordova the adult female fur seal would hop in there, but she's a much easier fit!

More about Isaac:

• See Isaac meet his namesake, musician Chris Isaak.
• Watch Isaac's amazing flipper stand.
• Check out Isaac's kick, spin and shake behavior.
• Don't miss this classic post with the mischievous sea lions showing up for Isaac's training session.

We started the weekend with this behind-the-scenes look at the newest addition to the Aquarium--Kitovi the Northern fur seal pup. She is only 2-weeks-old and she will not be on exhibit until later this fall, so this sneak peek is your first opportunity to see her up close and interact with the Aquarium's trainers.


Marine Mammal Trainer Patty Schilling was on hand with the newborn pup to give you an update on her progress and describe the behaviors you see. Patty joined a recent expedition to the fur seal colony on St. Paul Island near Alaska. Check out all of her expedition posts and watch her Aquarium lecture on the subject.

 More video

Visit the rest of the family!
This little one might not be on exhibit yet, but after you see her in the Hangout, you can come congratulate her father, Isaac. He's the largest seal in the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center. Grab your tickets online and print them out before you come!

More Aquarium hangouts
Google+ Hangouts on Air are a great way to connect with the Aquarium no matter where you are around the world. Not only can you watch live and ask questions as we share information about the blue planet, but after each event the video is saved to our YouTube channel and embedded on our blogs so you can access it any time.

Connect with the Aquarium on Google+ to be the first to know about these events and be sure to check out these previous Hangouts on Air:

Member Hangout with the Penguins
Aquarium members were invited to have a behind-the-scenes peek at the Aquarium's penguin colony during the recent renovation project. Now, the recorded video is up for everyone to enjoy.

 
Predicting Climate Change Lecture
The New England Aquarium was pleased to welcome the MIT Lorenz Center's John Carlson Lecture to the Simons The speaker is Professor Timothy Palmer of the Royal Society of Research.



 

Lunch Break with the Sea Turtles
Visit with some rescued and recovering sea turtles at the Aquarium's Animal Care Center and learn about sea turtle rescue from the Aquarium's Marine Animal Rescue Team.




Climate Change Education Activity
Join students from around the country as they learn about carbon sources and sinks. The interactive activity is designed to explain the carbon cycle and the imbalance in the carbon cycle.





Cooking Demo with Chef Barbara Lynch
Make some delicious nudi with a world renowned chef and the Aquarium's culinary partner, Barbara Lynch. It's a quick family friendly recipe that'll be ready in minutes.

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

Remember a couple of weeks ago when we showed one of our Northern fur seals learning a few steps of a dance? Well, since then Roxie has added some more steps to her repertoire. And she's been sashaying all around the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center, practicing her routine. Check out the video below to see how Roxie's dance is developing. Soon the trainers might decide she's ready for some music!

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

It's tough to work out on a 90-degree day. But if you have a nice big pool and an energetic friend, you can get plenty of exercise. Our new Northern fur seal pup, Leu, and Sierra the California sea lion show you how it's done. Watch them porpoise, tumble in the water, chase each other and generally have a great time.



Come to the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center to meet Leu and watch him frolic with his friends. And check out more of Leu's antics here, here and here.

Fur seals are fabulous swimmers, and they're pretty athletic all around, but what happens when they compete against humans on dry land? Some Aquarium staff members and friends took the fur seals on in a series of athletic challenges, most of which included some swimming—at which the fur seals excel. But in the event where everyone had to balance on the deck on one hand (flipper) with feet together, bodies forming a sideways T, the humans had the advantage. The last man (or woman or seal) standing would win for his or her team. See what happened in the video below.



Want to see some more great competitions? Check out the collecting race, triathalon, speed swimming and the obstacle course.

It seems that everyone wants to challenge the Northern fur seals! After seeing some staff members and supporters go toe to flipper with Isaac, Cordova and Ursula in some Fitness Friday challenges, several of our VPs and our president and CEO decided to get in on the action.

Our President and CEO, Bud Ris, battled Isaac to see who could beautify the water in the New Balance Marine Mammal Center faster by pulling more toys out of the water and placing them on the deck.


Patty introduces (left to right) Bud Ris; Walter Flaherty, Executive Vice President and COO; Joe Zani, Vice President of Finance and Operations; and Billy Spitzer,Vice President of Planning, Programs and Exhibits.

Although Bud did his best to distract Isaac with his splashy dive into the pool, he was hampered by having to wear a bulky wetsuit. Isaac, on the other hand, has the advantage of his sleek fur, which allows him to glide through the water.

 Watch the video below to see who won.



As you can see, the fur seals and sea lions in the New Balance Foundation Marine Mammal Center are inspiring athletes. Get inspired for your upcoming weekend and learn more about these active marine mammals by looking back at some previous Fitness Friday posts: Compare "landlubbing" harbor seals and fur seals. Ever wonder how well a sea lion plays soccer? Wonder no more. Check out Isaac's feats of strength in this post about learning new skills.