NAGS HEAD, N.C. — The weekend is for napping, and that's not something that just applies to humans.
A baby seal pup took a rest on an Outer Banks beach Friday, and a local photographer was there to see it, from a distance of course.
Photographer Wes Snyder posted a nearly six-minute-long video to Facebook showing the pup wiggling around and resting on the sand of the Nags Head beach as the waves crashed behind it.
"I spent two hours watching and observing this little fella enjoy the safety of the beach while it rested up from predators," Snyder wrote in the video's caption.
The video got more than 14,000 reactions and 417,000 views on Facebook, as of late Monday morning. Many of the people who commented said they didn't know seal pups came ashore on the Outer Banks.
"There’s a few each year so not common but not unusual either," Daryl Law, an assistant director with Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, told 13News Now.
Law described the pup's rest as "hauling out," which happens on days of heavy seas because the pups get tired and perhaps cold. He said that Jennette’s Pier staff responded to make sure the pup was okay, and it was.
Law advised that people and pets stay at least 100 feet away from the pups since they need to be left alone and some could carry diseases.
In the post, Snyder said he shot the video with a 500mm telephoto lens, which allows for making far away objects appear closer in images.
"IF you encounter one, just keep your distance and let them be," he wrote.
If you happen to see a seal pup on any of the Outer Banks beaches, keep your distance and call OBX Stranding Response at 252-455-9654 or Cape Hatteras National Seashore at 252-216-6892.