United Kingdom · 2000—2026
Grey and harbour seals
Seals around the United Kingdom.
Follow public seal observations from the United Kingdom. Browse published records, explore the places and stories behind them, or share an encounter with the Seal Watch team.
- Total reports
- 764
- Latest observation
Public reports · newest first
Public records archive
7 February—25 December
Follow updates
Receive alerts for new public reports. Lock-screen alerts show only a broad area in the United Kingdom.
Checking notification support on this device…
4 of 764 reports
Loading public records…
Public records could not be loaded. Check your connection and try again.
Explore by area
All areasMarkers represent named areas, never exact sighting positions. Circle size reflects report counts; numbers match the area list. Select an area to filter the archive.
14 of 36 reports mapped · 4 areas
Scroll the map sideways to explore the whole coast.
Mapped areas North to south
Areas without one map point
Broad country and coast labels, and places without a reviewed reference, remain filterable here.
- Belfast, Northern Ireland4 reports
- Devon, England2 reports
- Kent2 reports
- Cambridgeshire, England1 report
- Ceredigion, Wales1 report
- County Londonderry, Northern Ireland1 report
- East Sussex, England1 report
- Edinburgh, Scotland1 report
- Essex, England1 report
- Glasgow, Scotland1 report
- Gloucestershire, England1 report
- Maidstone, Kent1 report
- Mainland1 report
- Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England1 report
- Scotland1 report
- Suffolk, England1 report
- Teddington and Twickenham, London, England1 report
Map: Natural Earth.
Reports over time
All datesSelect a year, then a month. Counts describe published reports; one animal may appear in several reports.
Months in 2023
Grouped by each record’s archive date. Approximate dates keep their original labels in the records below.
-
Date:Reported: Unidentified Eyewitness comment on r/Belfast Christmas Eve seal video — https://www.reddit.com/r/Belfast/comments/18rsra4/
Observation: A commenter reported seeing a seal along the Lagan towpath on Christmas Day and wondered if it was the previous day's animal; continuity is unconfirmed.
-
Date:Reported: Unidentified r/Belfast eyewitness video — https://www.reddit.com/r/Belfast/comments/18rsra4/
Observation: The poster shared footage of a seal seen near Lagan Meadows on Christmas Eve.
-
Date:Reported: Unidentified r/northernireland eyewitness post — https://www.reddit.com/r/northernireland/comments/15weaay/
Observation: A poster reported seeing a seal on the towpath between Drum Bridge and Shaw's Bridge and shared footage. A matching r/Belfast post appears to be the same account and encounter.
-
Date:Reported: Unidentified r/northernireland eyewitness video — https://www.reddit.com/r/northernireland/comments/10wdofj/
Observation: The poster filmed a seal surfacing for air in the River Lagan. A follow-up comment places it near Stranmillis; a cross-post the next day appears to show the same video.