Sea ducks and seals......

Nate Grace

Nate Grace

Well-known member
A while back there was some conversation about seals taking sea ducks. I've seen it happen once and the guys that I hunt with have seen it several times. Someone on the Mass forum for duckhuntingchat.com posted some photos of a seal taking an eider and it is interesting to see. He also may have caught a seal bumping his dog on a retrieve.

Check it out: http://www.duckhuntingchat.com/viewtopic.php?t=76886


Nate
 
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"Look at the freaked out look on his face and you know something completely out of the ordinary occurred. "

Isn't that an understatement - TERRIFIED is more like it. That dog probably spent the rest of the day staring into the water wondering "what the He$$" is down there.
 
Google it and you'll find that this was a specific animal that had learned to take Eiders, (and interestingly he seemed to prefer drakes), in a boat basin.

Interesting picture and comments about the dog but the fact that he's spooked and that he has dropped a bird for the first time ever doesn't prove a Seal was involved.....doesn't prove it wasn't either of course but I'd say since the water is clear and you can see under the dog, and because seals are big that if it was a seal we'd see some indication of it in the pictures....

My thoughts....

Steve
 
I'm sure that the look on MY face was very similar to that dogs when I encountered a 6-8 foot Monk seal, 2 feet away, in the middle of the night, 60+ feet below the surface between Kihei and Molokini, Maui when he snuck up behind me. I had to clean my wet suit after that one.

It's too bad that Santa never comes to your house.
 
just because I don't buy into something that has no "proof" other than a "belief" doesn't mean I don't believe in Santa Claus.......Heck I have more "proof" that Santa Claus exists in photos and real life experiences than I have in that photo being a seal bumping that dog......



Steve
 
I was looking for a seal in the water too. It looks kinda like a big shadow out in front of the dog. The way that bird looks knocked from the dog's mouth is interesting too. I worried about Mike when that seal poked it's head up in the dekes......I didn't want to have to wrassle that tub-o-lard.
 
I'd add.....

The reason Pete left skid marks in his wet suit over "encountering the seal" was because he saw it and that startled him....if he hadn't seen the seal and had just "bumped" something then I'm sure he would have still been startled but he wouldn't have surfaced claiming "I was bumped by a Monk Seal" no matter how big his saucer shaped eyes were...

In the dog story the owner didn't indicate there was any bite or damage from the encounter, and its pretty clear from the pictures that whatever the dog "bumped", or was "bumped by" he didn't see.....so with no damage, and no evidence beyond the "I'm sure" statement of the owner, to me its just as easy to imagine that the dog cramped up, or maybe even had a Chocolate Moment as it is to beleive that "it was a Seal bump".....

Again not saying that it wasn't a Seal bump just that posting a picture of a Gray Seal in Norway feeding on Summer Eiders and then a swimming dog with a look of panic on his face doesn't prove that it was bumped by a Seal.....

As I've said before, "in my experience", and this includes more retrieves, and with multiple dogs, both mine and guests, I've never seen a seal do anything but look at a dog.....doesn't mean that the next retrieve won't end in disaster just that I don't believe dropping a bird and looking scared proves anything.....

And if that means I'm a skeptic, a Grinch and don't believe in the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, and Peter Pan well I can live with that.....

Steve
 
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Lost two black ducks to seals.

The buggers tread water about 100' from shore and watch us. They know that the sound of a gun is a dinner bell. Kinda like coyotes in our public pheasant release programs.

Haven't seen seals yet this year, but haven't gone to the areas where they typically hang out either.

Pete, if the wind cooperates, we'll show you and Ira some.

A>
 
the birds and the seals when the event happened? You physically witnessed the disappearance of the bird in the seals mouth? Both times?

Just curious.

Steve
 
Once Sandy and I were sitting in my boat, nice and quiet, you know...man and his best friend on a quiet duck hunt...my eyes were closing a little when I heard a splash from the starboard sife of the boat and a thump on the aluminum seat...I opened my eyes and there sat about a 2lb bullfrog lookin up at me with a wild look in his eyes. I looked closer and was surprised to see he had a little tiny color TV under one arm. Sandy's head came up too but before either of us could react, that frog took a huge leap right off the other side of my boat. Now Sandy's cockin her head and looking at me, who just sat their speechless. We were lookin at the wake that guy was makin thru the mud when we heard another thump and a splash...yup ANOTHER bull frog! And this one had a little policeman's hat on! He looked at me and then turned and looked at Sandy who started to whine a little. He was the meanest looking frog either of us had ever seen and he was pissed! He was breathin pretty hard too but in just a second he went over the side too in the same direction as that first bullfrog.

It was a really exciting day in the swamp even if we didnt see too many birds.
 
Well, I believe him cause two days later I saw the same frog in the policeman's hat. Only thing is, when I saw him, I told him I thought he was just a little out of his jurisdiction.
 
It all happened so fast we didn't have time to take pictures.

In fact Sandy got so upset she just laid there on the bottom of the boat with her paws up over her head while I rowed in.

Forever after that she would walk really slow in the water sniffin every lily pad and nosin it over just to make sure.

I sure miss that dog.
 
Steve,

No, I didn't "see" the seals take the birds, as was shown in Nate's post above.

I do want to thank you however for freeing my soul from that lie. It's been hard but somehow I feel better thanks to you.

You do have to believe me that I really did bed Brittany Spears... she wanted kids, so I broke it off.

Best,

Andrew
 
Andrew, you had Brittany as well? Why, that two-timing ho! I thought I was the only one.

So much for my plan to ruin her and take all of her money! Oh well.



Nate
 
Steve, she broke up with me to date that scoundral Nate. Something about the fact that I lost my Boston accent and that Nate still had his...

All in fun boys... have a nice day.
 
You guys stay away from my granddaughter, she gets into enough trouble with the hollywood types without getting mixed up with a couple wacko duck hunter wannabe's.
 
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