Grey seal populations have recovered strongly in the North Atlantic following protection. Management of conflicts with fishing industries and aquaculture must balance conservation success with individual animal welfare.
Grey seal welfare occurs in a contested space where conservation success creates new management pressures. Recovered populations attract demands for population control from fishing interests, even though evidence that seals cause meaningful fish stock declines is weak. Individual welfare concerns include entanglement in fishing gear and marine debris, disturbance at breeding colonies, and boat-strike injuries. The welfare-positive approach manages conflict through non-lethal means — modified fishing gear, exclusion barriers, and protected breeding areas — while recognising that recovered seal populations are an ecological success that benefits entire marine ecosystems. Monitoring entanglement rates and rescue capacity are important welfare infrastructure investments.