Mealtime is serious business for seals

The seven Long Island Sound Harbor Seals that live in the marine pool at the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk showed several hundred visitors Tuesday that the one thing they do most frequently is eat, eat, eat.

They gobbled up herring and other frozen fishes caught off the coast of New Foundland like it was going out of style.

"I think it all goes to their stomach," said young visitor Jordan Terrier, 14, of Thomaston.

They carry a lot of blubber, to survive in the cold waters, but they are quite agile.

"I like the way they move," Terrier said.

The aquarium feeds the seals several times a day. They consume many pounds of fish each day — much more than the Long Island Sound Sand Tiger Sharks, which look more menacing, with flashing rows of teeth, but are actually moderate in the appetite department.

The seals, though, are voracious.

"Tell him about your stitches," said one of the aquarium workers, referring to the times seal teeth have grazed the main seal handler, aquarist Vicki Sawyer.

She calls the seals by name, and they respond much like dogs would.

Actually, their behavior is not much different than a canine.

"We have an amazing relationship," Sawyer said of the seals.

The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. except on holidays. It is at 10 North Water Street in South Norwalk. Admission is $11 adults, $9 children 2 to 12. For information call

Tony Spinelli, who covers the region for ConnPost.com, can be reached at 330-6361.

Harbor Seal Facts

+Genus Species: Phoca vitulina-

+Class: Mammalia

+Coloration: Silver with black spots; black with gray or white rings; or almost pure white.

+Size: Males grow up to 6.6 feet long; females 5.6 feet long.

+Weight: Males weigh as much as 375 pounds; females 331 pounds.

+Life span: 30 years.

+Diet: Squid, crustaceans, mollusks, fishes.

+Number in world oceans: 500,000

Source: seaworld.org