Thought to have surpassed historic population levels, gray whales were removed from the Endangered Species List in 1992. The harbor seal is found from the Bering Sea in Alaska along the west coast to southern California. The species is abundant throughout the coastal and estuarine areas of Washington and Oregon. In California, harbor seals are abundant along the entire coast. Their smaller size, chunky shape, lack of external ears, and spotted coat distinguish harbor seals from sea lions.
Harbor seals feed opportunistically on fish, squid, and octopus.
In Oregon, harbor seals congregate in bays and estuaries to gorge on salmon and steelhead runs. In California at certain times of year, harbor seals prey heavily on fish caught in nets. Surveys in 1987 placed the California harbor seal population at about 20,000 animals. In the northeastern Pacific, the primary range of the common dolphin is the California-Oregon border to Costa Rica. Two stocks of common dolphins identified in California waters are the northern temperate, found offshore from about Isla Cedros north, and the Baja neritic, found close to the coast from San Diego south.