Grey Seal twins ....a real corker of mother nature

[Andreas Liedmann]

• Andreas Liedmann
• Andreas Liedmann
• Capture One 11 Macintosh

• Andreas Liedmann
• Andreas Liedmann
• Capture One 11 Macintosh

• Andreas Liedmann
• Andreas Liedmann
• Capture One 11 Macintosh

• Andreas Liedmann
• Andreas Liedmann
• Capture One 11 Macintosh

• Andreas Liedmann
• Andreas Liedmann
• Capture One 11 Macintosh

Hi Gabriela and all others as well ...
During my latest visit to Helgoland ....Grey Seal paradise of germany, (For those who do not know it , a small german island placed in the North Sea ) i found what i called a little sensation that does not happen that often .A seal mother gave birth to twins ....at least from my subjective feeling , i do still wait for official confirmation though. But i cannot keep this stuff any longer under the hood, so i thought i post this .
I talked to officials during my visit and asked if the two pups are twins , but nobody could confirm 100% , as nobody has seen the actual birth . Just the two little pups at the same size suckling on one female at the same time ....normally as far as i know a sign for being both her pups. So i followed their development for the length of my stay and they both became fed by the female the time i stayed there .
On the very last day female was gone and left the pups behind ....i and to go to.
During my time i talked to one guy about that case and he explained they will take DNA samples to proof it , once the pups are a little bit older and when mother left them for a short while . This did not happen while i was there.
So i waited till today and called that official guy to find out what happened to " my twins " , he told me some days after i left, the mother left the kids behind and the officials waited three days , then collected the two and transferred them to a place where they hand raise pups that will not survive . They took samples of hair and they still wait for the DNA analysis .
I would say ... i am still excited about the result .

So take this info and those images as not 100 % true in that case that the two are real twins , as soon as i know i will shout out loud .

Nevertheless here are the images taken over a weeks time of those cuties , last image is with a bull that was hanging out with them the whole time , on and on trying to mate with the female . I think finally he won and she left the kids , but i do not know exactly.

Hope you like the little story and the images ..... i really hope that the story is true in the end . It would be a real bummer for me , and a small sensation in my eyes.

Cheers Andreas

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Dear Andreas!

This is indeed a wonderful surprise! Been waiting for you to deliver on your promise but wasn't sure what to expect, Boetie! Well an interesting story and truly a special find - very well done in documenting this event!

Been reading a bit about the species and it seems twins are very rare because moms do not usually produce enough milk for two pups. It is said that when a mother does not recognise her pup for some reason she will not allow him to feed. In this case mom allows both pups to take milk, so you are most probably right: they both belong to her. I really hope you will be able to keep in touch with the officials, would love to know the results of the DNA test.

Little ones are truly adorable and so innocent, love the way you captured them. Sad to learn that mom was not able to take care of those little ones but glad they have been rescued. The last frame adds a lot of drama with the aggressive looking bull threatening the non-receptive mom. What really moves me here is the pups turned away as if refusing to see mom defeated.

Superb sequence Andreas, and the order in which you present the images works for me. Thank you so much for sharing, my friend:5

Warmest regards,

 

[Andreas Liedmann]

Thanks Gabriela ,will let you know in the end what happened with the DNA test .

 

[Gabriela Plesea]

Please do, Andreas:5