Latest news with #greyseal
Al Jazeera
11-07-2025
- Science
- Al Jazeera
Lithuania to save Baltic seals as ice sheets recede due to climate change
Lithuania will make a concerted effort to save its grey seal population, which has managed to stabilise though continues to remain vulnerable, in the Baltic Sea as it contends with shrinking fish stocks, pollution and the negative effect of climate change. Over the years, Lithuania has introduced several bans, including on toxic pesticide usage and commercial cod fishing, in an effort to fortify its grey seal population. The effects of climate change on the seals' habitat are severe, as the Baltic Sea, which is shared by the European Union and Russia, rarely freezes over now, depriving the seals of sanctuaries to rear their cubs. 'Mothers are forced to breed on land in high concentration with other seals,' said Vaida Surviliene, a scientist at Lithuania's Vilnius University told the AFP news agency. 'They are unable to recognise their cubs and often leave them because of it,' she said. Survival rates for cubs in the wild can be as low as 5 percent, according to local scientists. Rearing cubs ashore also leaves mother seals exposed to humans, other wild animals, rowdy males, as well as a higher risk of diseases, according to Arunas Grusas, a biologist at the Baltic Sea Animal Rehabilitation Centre in the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda. Grusas first began caring for seals in 1987, when he brought back a pup to his office at the Klaipeda Sea Museum, which now oversees the new rehabilitation centre built in 2022. 'We taught them how to feed themselves, got them used to the water – they had to get comfortable with the sea, which spat them out ashore practically dying,' Grusas said. The very first cubs were placed into makeshift baths set up in an office. The scientists then nursed them back to health, first with liquid formula before moving on to solid food. In the late 1980s, the seals were nearly extinct – there were just about 4,000 to 5,000 left in the sea, from a population of about 100,000 before World War II. Recently, a growing number of adult seals have been washing up on Lithuanian beaches. Scientists like Grusas point the finger at near-shore fishing nets, where seals desperate for food end up entangled and ultimately drown. Once the seals are ready to re-enter the wild, scientists release them into the sea with GPS trackers, which show the seals generally favour a route north towards the Swedish Gotland island in the middle of the Baltic Sea, where fish are more plentiful. Some, however, are scared to venture off alone and return to the boat from which they were released. Eventually, they all find their way back to the wild. The annual maximum ice extent in the Baltic Sea has been decreasing rapidly since the 1980s, with the lowest extent on record in the winter of 2019-2020.
BBC News
07-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Warning as South Walney seal colony disturbed by kayaks
People in kayaks and canoes have been urged to stay away from a grey seal Wildlife Trust said there had been a rise in people disturbing the seals at its South Walney Nature Reserve near charity reminded people the government advises all watercrafts stay a minimum of 328ft (100m) away from seal haul-out sites, and that area on the beach had no public Gould, marine officer at Cumbria Wildlife Trust, said when the seals were disturbed they were prevented from resting, digesting their food and caring for their young. "While wildlife encounters can be an exciting experience, there are important guidelines in place to protect people and seals from harm," the charity would know if they were too close if the seals started to look at them, it added."If this happens, immediately start backing away quietly to avoid further disturbance." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
18-05-2025
- Science
- BBC News
Rehabilitated seals from Cornish Seal Sanctuary tracked using GPS
A GPS tagging project has given researchers an insight into the movements of rehabilitated grey seal pups. The trial study run by Dr Luis Huckstadt of the University of Exeter, in cooperation with the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, tracked the movements of 16 rehabilitated seal pups, which were released from the sanctuary in first pup fitted with a tag, Maggot, made an unexpected journey to Brittany, travelling more than 150 miles (241km). A second pup named Selkie, rescued from Jersey in January, was the first of the seals in the study to cross international waters by swimming up the River Somme in northern France. Whirligig, a pup rescued from Weymouth, headed straight back to his local waters after being was earlier spotted lounging on the pontoons of Brixham Harbour in the spring. Dung Beetle, a pup released in south Cornwall, headed straight for the southern coast of Van Domberg, senior animal care specialist and research coordinator at the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, said: "For the first time, we're seeing where these pups go, how quickly they settle, and where they find feeding grounds."The early data gives us valuable insight into the success of rehabilitation and the behaviour of young seals post-release." The sanctuary said the project was made possible thanks to guests and supporters, as well as the dedication of the its animal care team, who rehabilitated more than 30 pups over the Van Domberg said: "We rescue seals with the aim of releasing strong, healthy animals back into the wild. "But thanks to this technology, we're finally able to follow their stories beyond the shoreline."It's amazing to see them thriving, exploring, and in some cases, travelling hundreds of miles."It's real proof that our work matters. "It's so exciting to see where they head off to and heartwarming to know that they are doing so well out there in the wild."
