seal.watch / uk

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.

Meet the grey seal → · Meet the harbour seal →

Total reports
764
Latest observation

Public reports · newest first

Public records archive

21 January—29 December

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9 of 764 reports

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Explore by area

Markers represent named areas, never exact sighting positions. Circle size reflects report counts; numbers match the area list. Select an area to filter the archive.

4 of 9 reports mapped · 3 areas

N ↑County Down, Northern Ireland · 1 report1London · 2 reports2Cornwall, England · 1 report3

Scroll the map sideways to explore the whole coast.

Mapped areas North to south

  1. County Down, Northern Ireland1 report
  2. London2 reports
  3. Cornwall, England1 report

Areas without one map point

Broad country and coast labels, and places without a reviewed reference, remain filterable here.

Map: Natural Earth.

Reports over time

All dates

Select a year, then a month. Counts describe published reports; one animal may appear in several reports.

  1. 22000
  2. 42001
  3. 12002
  4. 12003
  5. 32005
  6. 22006
  7. 52007
  8. 12008
  9. 32009
  10. 92010
  11. 132011
  12. 72012
  13. 152013
  14. 82014
  15. 82015
  16. 92016
  17. 282017
  18. 212018
  19. 142019
  20. 212020
  21. 182021
  22. 152022
  23. 362023
  24. 302024
  25. 2482025
  26. 2422026

Months in 2016

  1. 1Jan
  2. 2Feb
  3. 0Mar
  4. 1Apr
  5. 0May
  6. 0Jun
  7. 0Jul
  8. 0Aug
  9. 2Sep
  10. 0Oct
  11. 1Nov
  12. 2Dec

Grouped by each record’s archive date. Approximate dates keep their original labels in the records below.

  1. River Dee above normal tidal limit Aberdeenshire, Scotland
    Pv018D SMRU report, 2017 — https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/10023/12017/SSI_interim_report_2017.pdf

    Photo-identified juvenile female harbour seal above the River Dee normal tidal limit. Harbour seal · 1 seal

  2. Rocks near Loth Ferry Terminal, Sanday Orkney, Scotland
    Unidentified The Orcadian, 5 December 2016 — https://orcadian.co.uk/lucky-rescue-sanday-seal-pup/

    A grey seal pup became trapped between rocks near the ferry terminal and was freed by local rescuers with coastguard assistance. Grey seal · 1 seal

  3. Newtownards area County Down, Northern Ireland
    Unidentified natasha59 — iNaturalist

    Photographic observation identified on iNaturalist as grey seal (Halichoerus grypus). Grey seal

  4. River Thames bank, Greenwich London
    Unidentified HuffPost UK, 6 October 2016 — https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/thames-seal-spotted-london-river_uk_57f62556e4b0efc7e3c4c87a

    Paul Wyatt's post, embedded by HuffPost, says he walked past a seal on the Thames bank in Greenwich on 24 September. Species is not identified. Other October sightings in the article are not combined with this encounter. Species not recorded · 1 seal

  5. Portreath beach Cornwall, England
    Unidentified Cornish Seal Sanctuary case archive — https://www.sealsanctuary.co.uk/html/seal201617css.html

    A five-day-old whitecoat male seal pup was rescued from the beach and taken for rehabilitation. Grey seal · 1 seal

  6. River Dee above normal tidal limit Aberdeenshire, Scotland
    Pv036D SMRU report, 2017 — https://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/10023/12017/SSI_interim_report_2017.pdf

    Photo-identified harbour seal Pv036D above the River Dee normal tidal limit. Harbour seal · 1 seal

  7. Conwy coast Wales
    Unidentified russhedley — iNaturalist

    Photographic observation identified on iNaturalist as grey seal (Halichoerus grypus). Grey seal

  8. English Channel coast England
    Unidentified chamaeleo — iNaturalist

    Photographic observation identified on iNaturalist as harbour seal (Phoca vitulina). Harbour seal

  9. Near South Quay DLR station London
    Unidentified ZSL Thames Marine Mammal Survey public sightings map — https://sites.zsl.org/inthethames/main/ (reported by Rosy)

    Observer description: The observer thought it seemed like a young grey seal. It bobbed up and down in the water by South Quay DLR, then dived and disappeared.