Seals are excellent swimmers, divers and hunters, but who knew they could climb so well with such short flippers?
In this short video, one cute seal -- likely a gray seal -- recently spiced up a dreary day for a few Cape Cod duck hunters. While spotting flocks of birds from their layout boat, a seal propped himself onto the edge and decided to leap onboard before they could react. One welcomed the blubber guest, saying "Hi buddy! What's your name?" while the other hunter joked, "His name is get off of me!"
Though the marine mammal certainly proved his cuteness by making one of them his cushion, it was likely less comfortable for the man -- gray seals are heavy creatures, weighing up the 880 pounds and eating four-to-six percent of their body weight each day.
Gray seals have three main populations: a western Atlantic stock, a northeastern Atlantic stock and the Baltic Sea stock. Once a rarity along New England waters due to human hunting, populations have rebounded since the Marine Mammal Protection Act was instated in 1972. Their rebound has mixed reviews in the public eye: They're great for the tourism industry, but are a nuisance to the local fishing economy and bring sharks closer to shore.
Related
Before You Go
