We have two species of seal around the Welsh coastline. They are the Atlantic grey seal and the harbour seal (common seal). The Atlantic grey seal is by far the most common around our coastline with them being seen on almost all the coast where as the harbour seal is only really seen on the north coast of Wales and occasionally on the south coast when one comes across from Devon and Cornwall where they are more common.
The grey seal is by far the most common seal we have around the Welsh coastline with the population increasing year on year and them covering almost the whole coastline around Wales. There is a large size difference between the Male grey seal and the female. The male grows to around 2.5m whereas the female will be around 2m. The grey seal pupping season in Wales is around September to October where we receive large number of reports of the white coats (grey seal pups) who have been caught out by routh weather or human activity.
The harbour seal otherwise known as the common seal is far smaller than the grey seal with them only growing to just over 1.5m. There currently on really observed on the North coast of Wales where there is a small group amongst all the grey seals. We do occasionally get reports of them along the south coast of Wales, but it is believed these are individuals that have come across from Devon and Cornwall.
Despite the size difference it is hard to tell the difference between the grey seal and the harbour seal. One of the key differences is in the shape of the nose. With the grey seal the two nasal passages are separate whereas with the harbour seal they join at the base.
Please see the two images below:
Left - Grey Seal pup
Right - Harbour Seal pup
