Apropos of the seals at the Seaside Aquarium: we were there when the staff fed them. The seals crowded around the person feeding them, competing for her attention like puppies in a kennel. In the wild, harbor seals are so shy of human contact that, if they see a person looking at them, they will slip into the water. If a person handles a wild seal's pup, mama is likely to abandon it.

The seals at the Seaside Aquarium have been bred in captivity for several generations. Their behaviour no more resembles that of wild seals than that of dogs resembles the behaviour of wild wolves.

The octopuses were pretty hip, too.