Visitors delighted to see black seal at Donna Nook

Visitors heading out to see the seals at Donna Nook got an extra special treat recently after spotting an uncommon black seal in the viewing area.
This beautiful black seal has caught the attention of thousands at Donna Nook. Photo credit: JPC Photography.This beautiful black seal has caught the attention of thousands at Donna Nook. Photo credit: JPC Photography.
This beautiful black seal has caught the attention of thousands at Donna Nook. Photo credit: JPC Photography.

Thousands of people have been heading up to the coast over recent weeks to see the grey seal colony hoping to catch a glimpse of a newborn baby seal.

But instead of seeing the usual, grey, white and brown seals, this beautiful black seal pup (pictured above) has been the talk of the town.

Rachel Shaw, senior communications officer for the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, said that black seal pups are uncommon but not unusual.

“We only see a few black seal pups every year at Donna Nook because they aren’t always as close to the fence and easy to photograph,” Rachel said.

“Black pups are born with the same white ‘lanugo’ coat as all the other pups.”

She added that the black colouration becomes visible at the first moult when the pup is two to three weeks old. The cause of this is most likely to be genetic, similar to the occasional occurrence of black rabbits.

The image of this black seal was sent to us by photographer Jay Clarke from Gainsborough, who took his family to see the seals for the very first time.

He said: “We’ve been wanting to see the seals at Donna Nook for a few years, however work has always got in way. So we were determined to get there this year.

“A few days before we were due to visit, we heard about the black seal , so we didn’t want to miss out.”

Jay added it was a heart melting experience and felt lucky to have something like this an hour’s drive away and would be heading back.