Elephant Seal Weaner A sleepy "weaner" elephant seal takes a break from napping to take a look around. The pup recently molted and lost its dark baby fur. The pup is about 6 weeks old. The moms leave the pups after 4 weeks of nursing. The weaners are left to learn how to swim before they go out to sea (a long swim to Alaskan waters). These northern elephant seals grow to be as long as 16 ft. and as heavy as 5,000 pounds. 03-APR-2010
Return to the Nest A male great blue heron returns back to the treetop nest. Its sunset chores include collecting branches for nest construction. Pt. Lobos State Reserve Carmel, California 20-MAR-2010
Red-Tailed Hawk Flight At sunset, a red-tailed hawk searches for its next dinner in the open fields. Red-tailed hawks on the West Coast seem to be darker than those in the Midwest and East Coast. Shoreline Park Mountain View, California 01-APR-2010
