Columbo spends World Oceans Day at Vic Bay

Update

GEORGE NEWS - Columbo, the beloved southern elephant seal, celebrated World Oceans Day on Sunday 8 June at Victoria Bay, stirring up wonder and lapping up public adoration.

Celebrated annually on this date, the theme for World Oceans Day 2025 was 'Wonder: Sustaining what sustains us' and shone the spotlight on the amazing way in which the ocean sustains humanity and the subsequent need to use its resources sustainably.

Sunday was Columbo's sixth day at Vic Bay, and as on the preceding five days, the Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (Smart) was on guard to make sure people keep a safe distance from the well-camouflaged pinniped.

Smart's Val Marsh said Columbo has been spending his time at the picturesque cove, moving in and out of the water, apparently feeding and then lazing on the beach, digesting his food while being looked after by these dedicated ocean warriors.

She said it was unusual for southern elephant seals to lie around on one place for this long, besides in the summer months when they have historically spent up to three weeks chilling on the beach while moulting.

Columbo spent a chilly World Oceans Day on Sunday 8 June at Vic Bay

"He is not moulting now, he's just resting, occasionally scratching and yawning," Marsh said. She described this solitary species, native to the Subantarctic and Antarctic islands, as the deepest divers in the seal family, and with the ability to stay out at seas for days. "We don't know if he's been back to the Southern Ocean of if he's become a vagrant seal, like Buffel in Cape Town. But he seems to love the Garden Route."

She said how and why Columbo has come to hang out along our coast for the last two years is a mystery. While the scientific community is not sure whether it is due to climate change or a change in Columbo's original environment, one thing is for sure, we are definitely seeing more of these seals than in previous years. She mentioned a similar change in location observed in orcas and great white sharks in recent years, also yet to be explained.

Val Marsh of Smart