photo by Greg Hofmann

11/28/2005: In many Central Coast circles, it would surely be politically incorrect to observe that this seal has a coat of fur that would have particular appeal to a seal hunter – I can only plead that I'm currently reading Jack London's fine novel, The Sea Wolf. Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) are one of the most wide-spread mammal species in the world. This one is resting on a bed of eelgrass (Zostera marina), a key habitat for certain species of marine life. Eelgrass is not actually a grass, but it is the only flowering plant that grows underwater in Elkhorn Slough.