St Andrews researchers appeal for the public to help them understand why UK Harbour seals are in steep decline

St Andrews researchers appeal for the public to help them understand why UK Harbour seals are in steep decline - University of St Andrews

The UK is home to two species of seal, the grey seal and the smaller harbour seal.

A seal laying on a rock sticking it's tongue out! — Tagged Harbour Seal. Credit Julia Sutherland – SMRU

In some areas of Scotland, harbour seal numbers are in decline or are at drastically depleted levels compared to 20 years ago.

SMRU aerial surveys revealed harbour seal numbers in The Wash (southeast England), the main population centre in England, are ~25% lower than in 2018. This large embayment has regularly been home to around 5,000 harbour seals, when surveys began in 1988 and as recently as 2018. University of St Andrews Sea Mammal Research Unit (SMRU) are undertaking a programme of work to understand the decline.

Its thought that larger grey seals are potentially a factor.

The UK is home to over a third of the world’s grey seals (Halichoerus grypus). Their increase, since the cessation of culls in the 1970s and the ban of hunting in the early 1980s, has been hailed as a conservation success story. Indeed, SMRU aerial surveys revealed that the number of grey seals in southeast England has risen over 20-fold in the last 20 years from less than 2,000 to over 40,000.

Surveys conducted by partner organisations, indicate there may be a recent decline in the number of grey seal pups born on the UK east coast; the reasons are unknown but marine heat waves (2023 and 2024) and a disease outbreak are potential factors.

Dr Debbie Russell, Deputy Director of SMRU said “The apparent drop in grey seal pups need to be investigated further. SMRU will be continuing their aerial survey program in August 2025 to survey key grey and harbour seal haul-outs. SMRU are also scheduled to survey all major grey seal breeding colonies in Scotland and east England in 2025 to generate estimates of pups born across colonies. These will indicate the degree to which declines at some colonies on the east coast are offset by increases at others, and the nature of the declines – whether the associated females have died or are still alive but did not give birth. If there are area-wide declines, then the cause may have also impacted already compromised harbour seal populations.”