Selkies (or Silkies or Selchies) are seals that can shed their pelts and become beautiful humans. These creatures are common in Faroese, Irish, Icelandic, and Scottish folklore. There are many different stories revolving around these lovely creatures. However, most of them involve similar traits.

The Selkies become beautiful humans when they take off their pelts. As humans they often have human lovers. But they can't stay long and must return to the sea. They can not see the same human for seven years...unless... Unless, the human takes her pelt and hides it (or in rare situations burns it). At which time the Selkies (usually a woman in such stories) often marries the human and even has human children with the fisherman (usually the character to take the pelt). However, should she find her pelt she will take it and run back to the ocean which calls her. She will leave him and her children for the ocean. It is sometimes said that she comes back and plays with her human children in the waves of the ocean.

On the other hand male selkies are beautiful and handsome men who seek out dissatisfied women. Often these women are struggling romantically or in a loveless marriage. He will then seduce her.

It is believed that Selkies are supernaturally formed from the souls of drowned people.

Unlike many sea creatures these are in no way "sea monsters". Instead they are loving and gentle creatures or spirits. They only get violent when their kind or seals are killed. There are a few examples of this. In one story a fisherman steals a maiden sillkies' pelt. She lives as his wife for eleven years and when her son finds her pelt and asks about it she steals it back and runs to the sea. The fisherman kills her selkie husband and children as punishment for her "crime". She in turn kills all the men of the region, "till as many have been lost as can wrap arm in arm around the isle".

Many believe such stories are told because of the almost human look in a seal's eyes. They seem to have emotion and to carry more with them then just an animal heart. Of course, it could be that Selkies are real....