Panchito, the wandering elephant seal, makes his annual landing in Mexico, this time in Nayarit

A monolithic confederate elephant seal has been drafting crowds successful caller days aft hauling itself onto respective beaches successful the Pacific Coast authorities of Nayarit — marking the latest Mexican “vacation” for a marine wanderer nicknamed Panchito.

Tourists, vendors and residents alike watched successful amazement arsenic the seal, weighing astir 1.5 tonnes (3,330 pounds), came ashore Tuesday astatine Los Ayala formation successful the municipality of Compostela.

An elephant seal was spotted resting connected Tuesday greeting connected Los Ayala formation successful the municipality of Compostela, successful the authorities of Nayarit, Western Mexico.#Mexico #Nayarit #Compostela #ElephantSeal #Wildlife pic.twitter.com/CLkg7jSA3e

— Barlaman Today (@BarlamanToday) January 28, 2026

As the monolithic carnal sprawled retired connected the sand, civilian crews and biology officials rapidly cordoned disconnected the country to support onlookers astatine a distance.

Since 2020, the antheral seal, formally known arsenic Panchito Cortés, has been making yearly circular trips of much than 15,000 kilometers from his acold location waters disconnected the confederate extremity of South America — a super-long travel that is highly unusual.

Mexico News Daily covered his 2024 visit to San Felipe, Baja California, wherever helium besides returned successful the summertime of 2025, according to quality reports.

Southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina) generally walk astir of their twelvemonth astatine oversea and travel ashore periodically to rest, molt oregon breed, sometimes thousands of kilometers from their halfway range. 

Panchito has besides been spotted connected the beaches of La Paz and Mulegé, some successful the authorities of Baja California Sur facing the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez).

Other places helium is treated arsenic a returning VIP see beaches successful Sonora and Nayarit, wherever he’s been this week. Communities sometimes signifier 24-hour brigades to support him.

Panchito was archetypal seen for a fewer hours connected Sunday connected 2 beaches successful San Blas, Nayarit, earlier getting backmost into the h2o and past reappearing connected Tuesday connected Los Ayala beach.

Onlookers were kept down information portion arsenic firefighters, Civil Protection and the Federal Attorney’s Office for Environmental Protection (Profepa) monitored his condition. Authorities reported the seal was steadfast and moving without difficulty.

Marine biologists tin place Panchito by distinctive markings, notably 1 connected his chin. Five months ago, helium was identified arsenic being astir 10 years aged by the quality tract La Voz de la Frontera.

Officials accent that elephant seals are wild, protected animals that request quiescent to remainder and molt. They are urging radical to enactment astatine slightest 10 meters away, debar feeding oregon touching the seal, respect barriers and study immoderate problems to authorities.

Panchito is not to beryllium confused with the overmuch smaller Pacific harbor seals that telephone Baja California home.

With reports from Aristegui Noticias, El Heraldo de México, La Jornada and La Voz de la Frontera