The shy Selkies are marine creatures in the shape of a seal. A female can shed her skin and come ashore as a beautiful woman. When a man finds the skin, he can force the Selkie to be a good, if somewhat sad, wife. Should she ever recover the skin, she will immediately return to sea, leaving her husband behind. The male Selkies are responsible for storms and also for the sinking of ships, which is their way of avenging the hunting of seals. I have always been fascinated by the myth of the Selkie, or Roan (Irish for seal) folk. This is my interpretation.