Harbour seal populations in parts of Scotland have declined dramatically since 2000 with welfare implications from disease, predation, human disturbance and food competition.
The dramatic and largely unexplained decline of harbour seals in Orkney and Shetland represents a population-level welfare crisis. Individual seals may be experiencing food stress from reduced prey availability. Interaction with fish farms creates conflict leading to shooting of seals. Disease surveillance is insufficient to detect welfare-relevant pathogen impacts. Conservation management and recovery monitoring is urgently needed to prevent further population collapse.