TL: SEALS (GP)
SO: Greenpeace International
DT: Unknown
Keywords: oceans marine mammals greenpeace gp groups seals
factsheets /


The oceans used to abound with seals, sea lions and fur seals, a
group collectively known as pinnipeds. They were abundant
throughout the polar and sub-polar regions of the world, and were
integral components of the dynamic equilibrium of species which
constitutes a marine food web.

Pinnipeds are mammals, evolved for an aquatic existence from land-
dwelling ancestors of dogs, bears and otters; therein lie their
greatest downfalls. As warm-blooded animals inhabiting a cold
environment, they require dense, luxurious fur or blubber as
insulation. Unfortunately, humans have long prized both the skins
and oil which come from seals. While seals are highly specialized
for life in water, they must return to either land or ice to give
birth. The dense assemblages that they form at this time, combined
with their clumsiness out of water, means that they fall easy prey
to the clubs and guns of sealers.

Today, the threats confronting pinnipeds are relentless and
diverse. They are slaughtered commercially, drowned by the
thousands in fishermen's nets, killed in the name of fisheries
management, poisoned by chemicals, used as fish bait, and, in some
cases, driven from their habitat. The most insidious menace of all
results from human over-fishing, which may deprive them of the food
they require to survive.

Threats from the Fishing Industry

The most widespread and dangerous threats to seals come from the
fishing industry. Accusations against seals are usually one of
three types. The first is that they eat too many fish, thereby
contributing to the poor condition of fish stocks in many areas of
the world and depriving fishermen of their livelihood. Seals should
thus be killed to protect fishermen.

This is a naive and simplistic argument, and ignores the
extraordinary complexity of the marine environment. Not all fish
fall prey to seals or die in fishing nets; the vast majority die
from disease or are eaten by larger fish or other predators. Of the
fish which seals do eat, many are from species which are of no
commercial importance, or in areas in which no fisheries exist. It
is also possible that certain fisheries benefit from the presence
of seals, through the seals' consumption of certain fish species
which are themselves major predators of other
commercially valuable species.

The assumption that fish and seals cannot coexist does not stand up
to logic or historical fact. One need only recall that, until so
many of the world's fish stocks were devastated by modern fishing
methods a few scant decades ago, there were both many more seals
and many more fish. No one was suggesting that seals should be
killed to allow more fish to be caught by fishermen.

Secondly, since seals are necessary for the completion of the life
cycle of certain fish parasites, it is often suggested that fewer
seals would mean fewer worms in the flesh of fish.
However, the life histories of these parasites are very complex,
involving many alternate hosts, and depending on many other
factors. Killing seals will not solve this problem either. More
efficient fish processing is the way to ensure a high quality fish
product.

Thirdly, seals have been known to damage the gear and catch of
fishermen. The effects of this problem are usually quite
localized, and the average losses to individual fishermen are
rarely large. Better fishing methods and more appropriate gear will
reduce this type of interaction much more efficiently than killing
large numbers of seals.

One or more of these arguments have been used by the fishing
industry as justification for demands to kill seals. Culls or hunts
have been demanded in South Africa, Greece, the United Kingdom, the
United States, Canada, Scandinavia, Australia
virtually everywhere seals exist. In none of these areas has it
been shown that killing seals will result in any improvement in the
size or quality of fishermen's catches. The Canadian
government admitted as much in December 1987 when it announced that
it could not justify a cull of grey seals.

It is true that many of the world's fish stocks are in
disastrous shape, and that the fishing industry has many
problems, such as declining catches, variable quality product, and
excess catching capacity. However, years of relentless over-
fishing, the use of destructive and non-selective gear, the
physical and chemical destruction of fish habitat and other
wasteful practices are the real causes, not seals which are gamely
attempting to recover from the earlier destruction of their
populations.

Rather than being the culprits in this situation, seals should more
correctly be viewed as the unfortunate victims of our abuse of the
marine environment. Every year, large numbers of seals are caught
and drowned in fishing nets and discarded gear
worldwide. In Norway, tens of thousands of harp seals have
drowned in coastal gill nets in recent winters. Entanglement in
discarded fishing gear may be contributing to the current
decline in the population of northern fur seals in the Pacific.

Even worse, the ability of modern fishing fleets to plunder fish
stocks in a few years has caused problems for some seal species. In
the Barents Sea, to the north of Norway, several fish stocks have
been reduced to very low levels. As a result, harp seals from the
area have been unable to find food and many are
reported to be in poor condition; this could have drastic
consequences for the population. Elephant seals have been
declining in the southern Indian Ocean for several years, and
scientists have suggested that overfishing may be responsible. 

Currently available scientific evidence makes it clear that seals
are not the cause of the poor state of many of the world's fish
stocks. They are threatened just as surely as the fish stocks
themselves by the rapidly expanding capacity of the
modern fishing industry. Such problems can only worsen, as
fishing operations become more intense and competitive.

Commercial Exploitation

Virtually every species of pinniped has, at one time or another,
been the object of an uncontrolled hunting frenzy. A tragic pattern
has repeated itself around the globe. As lands inhabited by seals
were discovered, sealers arrived to kill them for their skins and
oil, and in a few short years the population would exist no more.
The magnitude of this slaughter is staggering: it has been
estimated that over 12 million fur seals alone have been
slaughtered during the past 200 years.

Many species were brought to the brink of extinction. One, the
Caribbean monk seal, was pushed over the edge, and many others are
still battling for survival. Some are losing. Today, harp and
hooded seals in the North Atlantic are the victims of the world's
largest seal hunts. Wherever they have been found, these species
were hunted mercilessly, and over the centuries several tens of
millions have been clubbed for their hides and oil. The result was
that the populations of harps and hoods have all been severely
reduced.

Due to widespread concern for the health of these seal herds, in
1983 the European Community imposed a ban on the importation of
skins of certain harp and hooded seals, which has since been made
permanent. 

The loss of this market caused a temporary decline in the
numbers of seals killed. However, hunts for harps and hoods have
increased in the past few years, as sealers are searching out new
markets.

Chemical Pollution

Despite the fact that seals frequently live in remote areas, far
from industrialized areas, chemical pollutants have been found in
species as diverse as walrus from northern Greenland and Weddell
seals in the Antarctic. Since pinnipeds are long lived and at the
top of the marine food web, chemicals accumulate in their tissues
to levels that are far higher than in their
environment.

In several areas of the world, pollutants have been associated with
health problems in seals. Female California sea lions which aborted
their pups were found to have higher levels of PCB's and DDT than
mothers producing normal pups. In areas of the Baltic and Wadden
Seas in northern Europe, several species of seals have failed to
recover after protection from hunting was granted in the 1960's.
These seals have very high levels of PCB's and DDT, which have been
shown to inhibit reproduction in harbour seals.

What is Greenpeace doing?

Greenpeace has been active for many years fighting these threats to
the survival of seals, both locally and on an international level.

Green peace is opposed to the culling of seals done in the name of
protecting fish stocks. With the increasing severity of the threats
posed by the fishing industry, efforts have been
intensified against the demands for killing seals. Green peace has
already helped to prevent culls in Canada, the United
States, Britain and Australia.

Greenpeace is opposed to the commercial hunting of seals. Since
1976, Greenpeace has been campaigning to protect seals from
commercial hunting. Tactics as diverse as direct action,
advertising and lobbying for protective legislation have been used
in the battle to protect harps, hoods, fur seals and other species,
from the North Pacific to northern Europe. Many
successes have been achieved, such as a permanent ban on the
importation of certain seal skins into the European Community, the
termination of the large vessel seal hunt in Canada, and the ending
of the commercial fur seal hunt in the United States.

Greenpeace has major, effective campaigns against toxic
pollution around the world. It is only by combatting the
production, use and disposal of poisonous chemicals that the oceans
will be made clean and safe for seals, as well as other marine
animals such as whales, turtles and fish.

What can you do?

Write to the governments of Canada, Norway, Britain, Australia, the
United States, South Africa, Greece, and any other country that
allows the killing of seals in the name of protecting fish stocks.
Tell them that seals are not destroying commercial fish stocks,
that they are innocent victims of over-fishing and poor management.

Write to the governments of countries such as Canada, Norway, the
Soviet Union and South Africa which are still conducting commercial
seal hunts. Tell them you want them to stop, that the world today
will no longer support such old fashioned,
irresponsible industries.

Write to your government, and tell them to stop polluting the
environment, for it all ends up in the oceans eventually.