The Mystery of the Purple Seal

When a bright purple elephant seal appeared on a Northern California beach, people online quickly began wondering what had gone wrong.

Had she eaten something unusual? Was she sick? Was it some strange condition scientists had never seen before?

The answer turned out to be much less alarming.

The female elephant seal had hauled out at Bight Beach in the Año Nuevo Reserve along the San Mateo County coast when observers noticed that much of her normally gray-brown body had turned a striking shade of purple.

Photos quickly attracted attention online, where theories ranged from the seal eating sea urchins to internal bleeding and other possible medical problems.

California State Parks experts soon solved the mystery.

The seal was healthy. She had simply been stained by red algae while resting on the beach.

The unusual color was especially noticeable because the animal was molting, a normal process for elephant seals. Thousands of the animals gather at Año Nuevo between April and August to shed their old skin and fur.

During that time, they spend long stretches hauled out on beaches while the old layer comes off and new fur grows underneath.

This particular seal apparently chose the wrong—or perhaps the right—patch of beach and picked up some temporary color along the way.

No mysterious disease, unusual diet, or reason for alarm.

Just a healthy elephant seal undergoing her annual molt with an accidental purple makeover.

And once she returns to the Pacific, her unusual paint job should wash away.