Coyotes Hunt Harbor Seal Pups on the California Coast
Gerraty FD, Grimes S, Pemberton S, Allen SG, Codde S . 2025. Coyotes Hunt Harbor Seal Pups on the California Coast. Ecology. 106(2):e70031
An increase of coyote predation on harbor seal pups has been observed at multiple sites along the California coast. At MacKerricher State Beach, it is common for coyotes to remove the head of the harbor seal pup. To confirm that coyotes were hunting harbor seal pups at the MacKerricher State Beach rookery, we placed one to two motion-triggered camera traps in April–May 2023 (16 trap-nights) and two to four camera traps in April–May 2024 (48 trap-nights) to document pup predation events. Throughout 64 trap-nights (32 nights total), we documented three instances of individual coyotes dragging harbor seal pups into dune vegetation, opening carcasses through the head and neck region, feeding, and removing skulls. Additional predation events at Point Reyes National Seashore are described as a comparison.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Gerraty, Francis; Grimes, Sarah; Pemberton, Sue; Allen, Sarah; Codde, Sarah
- Units
- PORE
- Keywords
- Canis latrans, land-sea connectivity, marine subsidies, Phoca vitulina, pinniped, predation