'Determined' Elephant Seal Makes It Her Mission to Cross Highway 37

A 500-pound elephant seal is safe Monday night thanks to the combined work of Marin Mammal Center officials, the CHP and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service during an exciting afternoon on a local roadway, officials report.

California Highway Patrol Spokesman Officer Andrew Barclay says it all started around 1:15 p.m. on Highway 37 near Sears Point and state Highway 121 in Sonoma County, when Marin CHP officers responded to a call of a seal blocking the eastbound lane of traffic.

“Callers reported a large seal blocking the one eastbound lane of traffic while trying to climb over the center divide wall,” he said.

Some people decided to pull over and attempt to help the seal— but she clearly wasn’t having it.

“Passerby’s who stopped to try to usher the large seal back to the water called to report that their vehicle was being attacked by the animal,” Barclay said.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service crews were able to divert the animal back into the water but it was still “very committed to crossing” Highway 37 and kept “trying to come out,” Barclay said.

Barclay described how the scene unfolded from there:

Prior to CHP arrival on scene, a United States Fish and Wildlife official arrived and was able to channel the wayward seal back into the large body of water on the south side of the roadway.

It quickly became apparent that the seal was committed to crossing the road as she quickly returned to the shore and tried to climb out, onto the roadway. Now with the help of CHP officers, the seal was stopped from exiting the water and kept from re-entering the roadway. Personnel from the Marine Mammal Center arrived on scene and quickly set about coming up with a plan to deal with the very large, very determined elephant seal, which was believed to be a female weighing in excess of 500 pounds.

After allowing the seal to exit the waterway and enter a parking lot on the south side of SR-37, personnel on scene attempted to channel her to a different waterway and hopefully back out into San Pablo Bay. The seal was resistant to being moved on her way and eventually was allowed to reenter the water way.

Personnel on scene continued to monitor her movement until after sun down when it appeared she had come to rest on a mud flat in the area. As the tide has gone out it has become very difficult for her to lift herself up onto the surrounding banks and back into the roadway.