In this video, diver Jason Neilus, along with some friends, head out into the waters off the coast of the Farne Islands, near Northumberland, England to play with some adorable seals.

Jason Neilus says “We’ve been visiting here for the last six years to say hello to the seal pups and we’ve never had this much interaction before“.

Seeing these playful pups was really special because it is such a rare opportunity, as Jason explains: “These seals are young pups who are very curious about the area in which they live. At the time of year that this was filmed the seals were about 2 months old and already 2m long and about 200-300lbs in weight. As always once the seals get older and move off to form colonies of their own elsewhere the majority of them will not see people again. Fully adult seals are rarely this interactive and whilst tolerant of divers they tend to keep away after their first year of diver visits.”

Fast Facts About Grey Seals

• Pups stay on land from birth until they finish moulting
• Newborn grey seals have white hair that lasts 2–4 weeks
• Grey seals do shallow and short dives. Most adult dives are less then 120m deep and under 8 minutes
• A grey seal’s diet varies depending on where they live. The seals near England, like the ones in this video, get over half of their diet from sandeels, cod and Dover Sole

What animal would you want to play with?

Post your suggestions below

References

http://eol.org/pages/328630/details

http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/9660/0

Earth Rangers is a non-profit organization that works to inspire and educate children about the environment. At EarthRangers.com kids can play games, discover amazing facts, meet animal ambassadors and fundraise to protect biodiversity.