Wildlife

Seal Welfare and Fisheries Interaction

Seals interact with fisheries in ways that create welfare problems for individual animals and management challenges for conservation.

Key Facts

Grey and common seals are legally protected in the UK
Seals become entangled in fishing gear causing drowning or severe injury
Shooting of seals by fishermen occurs where legal and is controversial
Aquaculture sites use acoustic deterrents that may cause hearing damage
Seal bycatch in trawl fisheries causes drowning deaths across populations

Welfare Considerations

Seals face welfare harm from direct persecution by fisheries operators and incidental entanglement in fishing gear. Drowning in nets causes severe distress before death, while shooting of individual seals causes pain and suffering. Non-lethal deterrents and exclusion devices that prevent seal-fishery conflict are the preferred welfare approach, though some have their own welfare implications.

What You Can Do

Support use of marine mammal exclusion devices in commercial fisheries
Advocate for reduction of seal-fishery conflict through non-lethal means
Report seal injuries or deaths from fishing gear to marine welfare authorities
Support research into effective non-lethal seal deterrents
Raise awareness about seal bycatch as a welfare and conservation issue