Where to see grey seal pups in the UK, and when they're born

When are seal pups born in the UK?

It depends where you are. Grey seals pup earlier in the west and later in the east, so the season moves around the coast from late summer to midwinter.

• Pembrokeshire and Skomer: late August into November. The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales has monitored Skomer's seals since 1983. In 2023 the first pups came unusually early, on 28 July, and most were born between 4 and 17 September.
• Cornwall: mostly September to December, says the Cornwall Mammal Group, many of them in sea caves above the high-tide line.
• Northumberland and the Farne Islands: the first pups arrive in October.
• Norfolk: late October into January. At Horsey the breeding season runs for about twelve weeks, from November to January.
• Lincolnshire: at Donna Nook the first pup of 2025 was born on 22 October, and the reserve could see pups from early November until the end of December.

If you're planning a trip, go to the west coast in September or October and the east coast in late November or December.

Where to see seal pups

Norfolk: Horsey, Winterton and Blakeney

Horsey is one of the busiest pupping beaches in the country. The Friends of Horsey Seals counted 3,246 pups there in the 2023 to 2024 season. The beach itself is closed to walkers for the whole breeding season. You watch from viewing areas on top of the dunes, a short walk from the car park, and there's a fenced walkway at Winterton. Volunteer wardens are usually about to answer questions.

Blakeney Point, further along the coast, is another big colony, run by the National Trust. Check its page for how to see the seals there this winter.

Lincolnshire: Donna Nook

Donna Nook is one of the easiest places to see pups well without disturbing them. A fenced viewing area, about 600 metres long, runs along the foot of the dunes, with the seals on the other side. Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust opens it from October to December. There's a car park charge, and the reserve is on an MoD range, so check the Trust's page before you go. In 2025, 1,924 pups were born there, 16.6% more than the year before.

Pembrokeshire and Skomer

In Pembrokeshire, pups are born in coves and caves under the cliffs, along the coast and on Skomer. The coast path gives you the view from above, which is exactly where you should be. Skomer is reached by boat from Martin's Haven, so check the boat's autumn dates before you plan around it. Under the island's code of conduct, boats near seals slow to under 5 knots. On Skomer itself, 250 pups were born in 2023 and about 70% of them survived to weaning.

Northumberland: the Farne Islands

National Trust rangers count the Farne Islands pups every few days through the season and have kept records since 1952. They counted 3,624 pups in 2024. The islands are reached by boat from Seahouses.

Cornwall

Cornwall's pups are mostly born in sea caves, above the high-tide line, so they're hard to see and easy to disturb. If you come across one on a beach, stay well back.

What a seal pup looks like, and how fast it grows

A newborn grey seal pup has a thick white coat and big dark eyes, and it can't swim yet. Cumbria Wildlife Trust puts its birth weight at just over 10 kg. Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust says about 14 kg.

Then it grows fast. The mother's milk is up to 60% fat, and the pup puts on about 2 kg a day. By three weeks old it can weigh three times what it did at birth. Around two weeks, it starts to moult its white coat, and underneath is a grey one with a pattern of blotches that's unique to that seal and stays with it for life.

At about three weeks the mother stops feeding it and goes back to the sea. The pup stays on the beach alone, living off its fat, until hunger drives it into the water. The Natural History Museum says that once pups are about a month old it's normal for them to be on their own.

How close can you get to seal pups?

Not very. The RSPCA, British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and the Friends of Horsey Seals all say at least 100 metres, about the length of a football pitch. Skomer's code says be aware at 100 metres and don't go closer than 50. At Horsey and Donna Nook the fences decide it for you.

The rest of the code is short:

• Never walk between a mother and her pup. A disturbed mother may leave her pup, and it will starve.
• Keep dogs on a lead, or leave them at home. Dogs aren't allowed in Donna Nook's viewing area in the seal season, or on Skomer at all, and a threatened seal will go for a dog.
• Don't fly a drone anywhere near a seal colony.
• Don't touch, feed or pet a seal. It's against the law.
• Use binoculars or a long lens. The Seal Alliance's advice is to stay far enough away that the seals can't see, hear or smell you. If a seal is looking at you, you're too close.

What to do if you find a seal pup on its own

Usually, nothing. A pup on its own is normal, especially one that's lost its white coat. Its mother may be feeding offshore, or it may already be weaned and resting.

Don't move it, even if it's crying. BDMLR says a seal pup should not be handled. Keep people and dogs well back, and watch from a distance.

If it looks injured or unwell, or it's somewhere unsafe, call British Divers Marine Life Rescue on 01825 765546. It's staffed 24 hours a day. You can also call the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999. At Horsey, the Friends of Horsey Seals wardens are on 07706 314514.

Grey seals in Britain

More than 120,000 grey seals live around Britain, about 40% of all the grey seals in the world, according to the Norfolk Wildlife Trust and the Natural History Museum. If you want to see grey seal pups, there are few better places in the world.