Oregon mammals

Northern Elephant Seal in Oregon

Mirounga angustirostris

Native to Oregon

Not listed as nonindigenous in Oregon by USGS NAS; native to its Oregon range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Northern Elephant Seal callingNorthern Elephant Seal callingMirounga angustirostris, Point ReyesNorthern Elephant Seal, San Simeon2Elephant seals fighting
Photo: Grendelkhan · CC BY-SA 4.0Northern Elephant Seal callingPhoto: Grendelkhan · CC BY-SA 4.0Northern Elephant Seal callingPhoto: Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 3.0Mirounga angustirostris, Point ReyesPhoto: Mike Baird from Morro Bay, USA · CC BY 2.0Northern Elephant Seal, San Simeon2Photo: Mike Baird, bairdphotos.com · CC BY 2.0Elephant seals fighting

Northern Elephant Seal in Oregon, by the numbers

Occasional in Oregon 74th most recorded of 178 mammals logged in Oregon

118 occurrence records
109 with iNaturalist photos
Jun 6, 2026 Last seen in Oregon

Records from 2000–2026.

118 total records count every Oregon occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 117 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Northern Elephant Seal in Oregon

Most sightings fall in May to July.

117 Oregon occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Oregon records (table)
MonthRecords
January6
February11
March12
April12
May21
June13
July13
August10
September2
October1
November7
December9

Monthly northern elephant seal occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Oregon, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Oregon, with recorded sightings peaking in May–July.

Occurrence map

Where Northern Elephant Seal has been recorded in Oregon

118 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

118 Oregon records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge Wilderness Area 37
Cape Arago Marine Gardens and Simpson Reef State Natural Area 5
Siuslaw National Forest 4
Beach 2

Protected places with the most northern elephant seal sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Oregon

CountyRecords
Coos County 30
Lincoln County 18
Clatsop County 8
Tillamook County 5
Lane County 3
Curry County 2
Douglas County 2
Other localities 50

The complete county distribution, spread across 7 Oregon counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Northern elephant-seal records are confined to Oregon’s coast, where beaches near the Oregon Dunes and coastal state parks offer both haul-out space and easy public observation. Reports increase from April through July, with May the strongest month, and are much thinner in autumn. These are sightings of animals coming ashore or passing near a well-watched coastline, not an estimate of offshore abundance.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Northern Elephant Seal calling
Full species profile Northern Elephant Seal Mirounga angustirostris Size 3–5 m9.8–16.4 ft Weight 400–2300 kg881.8–5070.6 lb Lifespan Up to 20.3 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Oregon in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"