Sunset Grey Seal Pup

Portrait of a grey seal pup (Halichoerus grypus) relaxing in the afternoon sun, photographed at Donna Nook on the Lincolnshire coast.

For much of the year grey seals are out at sea or hauled out on far away sandbanks, but from October to December the seals come ashore to give birth to their pups on the sand dunes of Donna Nook. Donna Nook is home to one the largest and most accessible grey seal colonies in the UK. There are about 3,000 Grey Seals along the coastline, and 900+ pups are born each year. The area is actually owned by the MOD (Ministry of Defence) as a bombing range, but surprisingly the seals seem relatively undisturbed by the military activity and return here year after year.