New Zealand Fur Seal Family Cape Palliser Wairarapa
Photo & Vacation Spot

A New Zealand Fur Seal family, consisting of a mother and pup, sits on the rocks at the Cape Palliser Seal Colony in Wairarapa, New Zealand.

A New Zealand Fur Seal pup nestles up besides its mother atop the rugged coastal rocks at the Cape Palliser Seal Colony in Wairarapa on the North Island of New Zealand. A mother Fur Seal will watch over her family members and nurse her pups until they reach about ten months old, at which time the pups can then fully feed themselves.

After the pup is born, the mother will return to the water to begin a feeding frenzy, coming back to her young after about 6-12 days to nurse. The young family member will then nurse steadily for 2-7 days until the mother once again returns to the ocean for more food. This continues on and off, with the feeding trips for the mother becoming longer in between until the pup is old enough to face the world on its own.

New Zealand Fur Seal Female and Young, Arctocephalus forsteri, at the Cape Palliser Seal colony, Cape Palliser, Wairarapa, North Island, New Zealand.