Caitlin Fullam witnessed a beautiful interaction between a harbor seal and her baby in California’s Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. The young pup was learning to swim under the careful eye of mom, who was never far behind.
“The most precious moment, 1 year later,” Fullam wrote in an Instagram post sharing her throwback video. “Watching from a distance as a precocious newborn harbor seal learns to swim from its mom. It was so excited to get in the water but the mom really wanted to make sure to keep things safe.”
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The sweet footage struck a chord with people online.
“The fact that they teach their babies to swim where they learned to swim will forever bring tears to my eyes,” wrote one person.
Others called the video “special” and “magical.”
Harbor seals are protected in California under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). Fullam kept her distance, and no humans were on the beach with the mom and pup pair as the baby learned this important life lesson.
Watch as a baby harbor seal learns how to swim, with a lot of help from mom, here: