Gray Seal Pup Marks First Birth of 2016 at Brookfield Zoo

Brookfield, IL - The Brookfield Zoo rang in the new year with the birth of a 30-pound female gray seal pup, born Jan. 2 to an 11-year-old seal mama.

The pup is the first birth of 2016 at the zoo, according to the Chicago Zoological Society, which operates the Brookfield Zoo.

The newborn and her mother, Lily, will stay behind the scenes for several weeks while they bond.

Like all gray seal pups, this new year baby was born with long, white fur called lanugo. The fur will molt in two to four weeks, and it will be replaced by short, stiff hair, CZS reports. The zoo staff believes the big baby will gain several pounds a day to triple or quadruple in weight over the next month.

This is Lily’s second pup with the sire, 12-year-old Boone. The pair’s first pup, Charles, was born Jan. 1, 2014.

Gray seals are found in the Western North Atlantic, the Eastern North Atlantic, and the Baltic Sea, and their numbers aren’t threatened, according to CZS. But only 24 gray seals reside in eight North American institutions accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

To learn more about the new pup and gray seals, visit the Chicago Zoological Society’s gray seal pup page.

Photos courtesy of the Chicago Zoological Society.