Harbor seal

Phoca vitulina

12,641Records since 2000

JulyPeak month

62Counties with records

Least ConcernIUCN Red List

When it is recorded

Jan351

Feb284

Mar396

Apr507

May634

Jun1,288

Jul2,419

Aug1,817

Sep855

Oct560

Nov361

Dec360

GBIF records by month, 2000–2025 (all years combined).

#	County	Nation	Records
1	Highland	Scotland	625
2	Ards and North Down	Northern Ireland	573
3	Newry, Mourne and Down	Northern Ireland	446
4	Argyll and Bute	Scotland	248
5	Lincolnshire	England	245
6	Aberdeen City	Scotland	244
7	Cambridgeshire	England	199
8	Kent	England	129
9	Na h-Eileanan Siar	Scotland	129
10	East Lothian	Scotland	102
11	Orkney Islands	Scotland	93
12	Shetland Islands	—	85
13	Fife	Scotland	78
14	Essex	England	70
15	North Ayrshire	Scotland	64

2,033 England1,761 Scotland6 Wales5,963 Northern Ireland

Records per county (GADM level 2) and per nation; one record can count towards several areas. 62 counties in all.

Records since 2000: 12,641
Peak month: July
Counties with records: 62
IUCN Red List: Least Concern
Scientific name: Phoca vitulina
Also known as: Common Seal
Group: Mammals
NBN Atlas records since 2000: 12,545
Most recorded in: Highland, Ards and North Down, Newry, Mourne and Down, Argyll and Bute, Lincolnshire, Aberdeen City, Cambridgeshire, Kent, Na h-Eileanan Siar, East Lothian, Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands +6
Conservation designations: Bern Convention, Convention on Migratory Species, Wildlife (NI) Order 1985, Habitats Directive, Habitats Regulations (NI) 1995, Global Red List (JNCC), Biodiversity List – Northern Ireland, Biodiversity List – England, UK BAP priority species, Scottish Biodiversity List, Habitats Regulations 2010
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Phocidae
Genus: Phoca
Name with authority: Phoca vitulina Linnaeus, 1758
Described: 1758
Contributing datasets: 39