These are photos taken at Red Rocks, Wellington. Red Rocks is on the south coast of Wellington, facing across Cook Straight and into the South Island. It's a geologically interesting area and abandoned quarry that gets its name from the red pillow lava that can be seen in places; what attracts most visitors, though, is the seal colony.
The seal colony is a bachelor colony; the New Zealand fur seals here are males who lose fights for territory in the breeding colonies at the top of the South Island. Since it's a male-only colony it's significantly safer than a breeding colony, as the seals are much less aggresively territorial, and you're unlikely to stumble upon a pup by mistake.
DOC prefer people stay a decent distance away from the seals in order to avoid upsetting them; stress is bad for the seals, but they are dangerous. An adult male outweighs most humans, and can lunge across rocks surprisingly quickly if it feels threatened; they will display their teeth and bark to warn off anyone who gets too close.
 The other reason people come to Red Rocks. |
 Fur seal on rock. |
 Mugging for the camera… |
 …and dismissing it. |
 Rough seas in the background. |
 Fur seal relaxing. |
 Fur seal relaxing. |
 Fur seal strutting his stuff. |
 Fur seal barking. |