A popular and beloved elephant seal has landed in Saanich, B.C., on Vancouver Island.
Two-year-old Emerson has made his way onto a beach in Saanich to moult, which means he will be grounded for roughly five weeks to shed his skin.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada is aware of his presence and warning community members to not get too close to the wild animal.
“I thought it was an April Fool’s joke,” said Paul Cottrell with Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
“We’ve seen him multiple times … we saw him last June and even in September. We’ve relocated him (before) because he is a big animal and now he is huge.”
It’s not a rare sight for Fisheries and Oceans officials to see elephant seals moulting in B.C. at this time of year, and in fact, it is becoming much more common, Cottrell said.
“We’re getting more animals influx from further south. We get lots of moulting elephant seals every year and more of them every year,” he said.
“It really is a full-time job to keep them safe and the public safe.”
Fisheries and Oceans Canada has a B.C. seal team, which focuses on keeping interactions between seals and the public at a minimum.
“(There can be) issues with dogs off leash, small kids … if they get too close, they can get hurt,” Cottrell said.
“With Emerson, we are going to put up some fencing around him so he has a clear path to the water and people don’t get too close.”
The seal team will also be putting up signage and caution tape.
“We just want him to do his thing and move on but if we have to relocate him, we have the capacity,” Cottrell said.
Global News spoke with some community members who were watching Emerson closely.
“All the residents are so excited about the seal and I can’t believe how docile he is,“ Rahanna Vu said.
“As soon as I got on my break and I had to come see him down here.”
Of course, the celebrity seal is a favourite with kids in the community.
“Yesterday, I came here because my sister saw him. I came and stayed for an hour or two to watch him,” Preston Archibald said.
“He is very cute.”
Emerson’s personality is “welcoming,” according to Cottrell, because he was raised by volunteers in the U.S. after his mother left him at a park, but he still warns to give Emerson space so he can “do his thing.”
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