Apr. 12

JENNER, Calif. - Nibbles the elephant seal, a 900-kilogram lone male is seen frequently at the Russian River outlet to the Pacific, and local marine recreational outlets are warning the public about the seal's aggression.

On Easter Sunday, the seal grabbed a 36-kilogram pit bull and only let her go after he was attacked by the dog's owner.

"I was throwing a stick in the water for the dog," Angel Garcia said. The dog "started to shake when this torpedo thing launched itself out of the water and grabbed her."

On Tuesday, Nibbles growled at a kayaker, scaring him out of the water.

Surf shop worker Craig Henderson said the seal and local surfers share the same turf. "It is scary when he jumps in the water with you. He is huge, like a VW bug or something," he said.

The seal has been seen killing smaller harbour seals. They've now moved to other areas along the Sonoma County coast.

The elephant seal is an adolescent who likely hangs out alone at the river mouth because he is too small to compete for females at elephant seal colonies, Horn said. Adults can grow to four metres long and 2,000 kilograms.


go

he's just an angry teenager.. I can just hear him saying "No one understands me"