Scientists can only theorize. Sam Sadove, a marine biologist who works with Mr. Forestell and has been studying Long Island's seals for nearly two decades, says that the population explosion may have resulted from laws prohibiting seal hunting, a cleanup of coastal waters or some other unidentified factor. False Point, where we are seal spotting, is among the most popular onshore haul-out sites, typically attracting dozens of seals at low tide. In 1997, Mr. Sadove discovered that some seals had begun to make this area their full-time home, spending the whole year on and around the islands, breeding and raising their pups. During some downtime on the dunes, Mr. Forestell tells us more about the lives of harbor seals.
Seals are mammals, which means they are warmblooded, breathe air and give birth.
Although harbor seals are adapted to fishing, traveling, courting and mating in the water, they must come out to rest, warm up and dry out their coats, which is what the haul-out sites are for. Remarkably comfortable in the water, seals seem to undergo a personality change when they are on land. They'll bark, bump and snap at each other. The point of Mr. Forestell's study is to learn just how much seals are bothered even by limited contact with people. Their official watch is scheduled to last three hours, and as the minutes tick by the vigil gets tougher and tougher.