The annual grey seal pupping season is in full swing and these cute, furry additions to Scotland’s shores are a delight to see but Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) says think before you approach them.
The organisation is concerned that well meaning people are accidentally disturbing seals and their pups under the impression that they need help. Dog walkers are also being asked to keep their dogs on a lead during this critical period to prevent them from alarming seals.
SNH owns and manages Tentsmuir National Nature Reserve, on the north east Fife coast, and every year seals leave their pups on the beach while they hunt for fish. These pups might look abandoned but they are perfectly safe while the adults hunt offshore. Unfortunately people walking on the beach can alarm both the pup and its mother in the water by getting too close to have a look.
If dogs are off leads their natural curiosity can also cause great distress to the young seal as it will see the dog as a predator. Sometimes the mother seal will not come back to her pup if people and dogs have been near by.
The organisation is asking people to remember that the beach and dunes are a nature reserve as well as a place for people to relax. Tom Cunningham, SNH’s reserve manager at Tentsmuir said: ‘The reserve is here for people to enjoy and to see the wonderful wildlife that lives here. Many people come here because it is a great place to see wildlife behaving naturally.
‘At this time of year, with seal pups on the beach, we ask walkers to be careful and give seals and their pups a wide berth. Please don’t go up to them or try to touch them and please keep your dog on a lead and a distance away. The pups are left on the beach by their mothers who will come back for them later. Unless a pup is obviously injured and you want to phone for help, then the best thing to do is keep away rather than risk preventing the mother coming back’.
The organisation suggests that if people want to get a better look at the seals, they keep their distance and use a pair of binoculars instead of moving closer. To find out more about watching seals see the Scottish Marine Wildlife Watching Code. And learn more about Tentsmuir National Nature Reserve.
While this information relates to SNH and the Tentsmuir reserve, the guidelines on how to behave during pupping seasons apply across the board – both on location and on type of seal. If a seal is obviously injured, phone the SSPCA for advice
The SNH ‘soundbite’ on this is: ‘Seals need space not help’.
The photograph above is reproduced by permission of the copyright holder, Scottish Natural Heritage.
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This is good advice, giving wild animals the space that they need and for dog owners please remember that seals can bite, and that a seal bite contains bacteria that your dog (and yourself) may not have the antibodies for, in which case the wound may take a very long time to heal. That could also mean expensive vet bills!
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) is another port of call if you need help and as they are used to dealing with seals, you can find a very useful download concerning “seal bites” on their website, written by a Doctor. BDMLR are very active on the east coast and have links elsewhere, the Scottish Sea Life Sanctuaries are also willing to help if you get stuck for advice.
The “close” season, refers to when these seals should not be shot as it is the pupping time for Atlantic Grey Seals; from the 1st of September to the 31st of December, but the further north or east that you go the pupping season may be later, so to be safe I would recommend avoiding seal pups well in to January, possibly stretching into February.
This is not just a matter for walkers and dogs, sea-kayaks, yachts and other marine users can cause untold damage to seal haul-outs/colonies during the all important pup and feeding time. Grey seal pups need longer on land in order to develop and cope with the rigors of the sea.
The Common or Harbour seals pup earlier in the UK, their “close” season is from 1st June to 31st of August, this summer I saw a yacht anchoring in a Special Area of Conservation (one of only three on the west coast of Scotland) for Common Seals, that meant for at least one whole tidal cycle, pups could not get onto their very special and important haul-out: it may sound strange but they can die from hypothermia as a result; please treat our wildlife with respect, the more that you know about it, the more you will be able to enjoy it.
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