If a rainbow stands guard over a pot of gold, what treasures does this ethereal archway hide?
Fogbow, mistbow, white rainbow – a sailor might call it a sea-dog. It is created by light refracting through mist, and there was no shortage of that in Norfolk yesterday, as if the clouds had wearied of the heavens and slumped onto the land to wait out the dying embers of the year.
Fogbows are uncommon; I’ve never seen one before. And in a twist of magic, it did have white gold at its feet – but of fur, not precious stones. The seal haul-out beach that I last visited in October is now a nursery for over a thousand babies.
Many terrestrial carnivores give birth to helpless young and nurse them for months, if not years, but grey seals have no such leisurely schedules. After just three weeks of intensive feeding on milk that is over 50% fat (compared to 4.5% in human breast milk and 6% in fox milk), they are done and weaned.
This little one tried to explore the beach by itself, and its mother lumbered after it, putting the breaks on its travels.
But they leave her soon enough, living in the dunes for a week or two, their white fur taking on the speckled hues of the adults.
Their mothers, meanwhile, mate with the bulls. Eleven months from now, new pups will be born.
Maybe the fogbow will return to greet them.
You’ve come to the right place
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It’s a special part of the coastline 🙂
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Beautiful post, Adele.
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Thanks Anneli. You never know what you’ll find when you head out!
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So true!
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Both are marvels of nature!
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It was a very special sight! 🙂
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Such a beautiful post; your photos are wonderful!
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Thanks Lynette. My wildlife lens weighs far too much but it was definitely worth carrying it to that beach.
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Never seen, or even heard of a fogbow. Impressive! And the seals are glorious.
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I didn’t know fogbows existed either until last weekend! Apparently they are more common in the Arctic.
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What a beautiful post – lovely how the fogbow (I also had not come across this before) unites with the seals below. Sending best wishes and may you find many more such treasures in the year ahead.
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Thank you, and wishing you a happy Christmas and peaceful new year.
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Thanks Adele.
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Hello from Pennsylvania USA. I learned a new word today: fogbow. I hope I get to see one before my time expires.
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Hi, and welcome here! Fogbows seem to be pretty elusive things on the whole but I hope you find one. They need fog (in front of you) and sunshine (behind you).
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