Seal population on the rise in Thames estuary

There are plenty of seals around, and always a pleasure to see. Some years ago, I watched about ten of then hunting for mullet in Hamford Water, which they did by forming a semicircle against the northern shore and closing it slowly as they drifted with the tide.

What irritates me is how paranoid some of the continentals are about seals. They set up no-go zones and harass anyone who goes within half a mile of them, though in this country the seals will come up to your boat and say hello.
 
johnalison said:
There are plenty of seals around, and always a pleasure to see. Some years ago, I watched about ten of then hunting for mullet in Hamford Water, which they did by forming a semicircle against the northern shore and closing it slowly as they drifted with the tide.

What irritates me is how paranoid some of the continentals are about seals. They set up no-go zones and harass anyone who goes within half a mile of them, though in this country the seals will come up to your boat and say hello.
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Totally agree, so why did I feel bad the other week when I went close to the seal colony in Lawling Creek and they all took cover in the water?

Apart from the obvious witty answers, I guess it is because I felt that I had disturbed them and frightened them. Well, the boat frightened them... I think that there is a fine line between observing and interfering with nature. Nothing wrong with the former, plenty with the later.

Does anyone have any firm guidance as to what is acceptable behaviour?
 
They are endlessly curious, and clearly enjoy watching us fascinating boat mammals, and our bizarre antics. They aren't endangered or starving, and they can always go somewhere inaccessible to sailors, in 3 dimensions.
I have anchored in Scottish lochs and caused a few of them to plop in to the water from their bit of rock, so what?
One battered old seal used to wait for me to eat my chips on Grimsby Fish Dock, I threw chips and he caught them like a collie dog, he was there every lunchtime patiently waiting!
As long as we aren't clubbing them for their pelts, I don't see any problem personally.
 
I think it is hard to say at what point 'disturbance' is caused. They are very curious, but also wary creatures, so they will dive below the surface to keep out of harm's way (or best able to take flight) while they keep an eye on what's moving around.

If they're ashore they will usually get themselves in the water, and hence more mobile, if anything comes near.

Paddling in a kayak I've had them staying put, on the surface, but keeping and eye on me while I pass only a few yards away. They will usually dive, but often come up again closer to me, but in a different direction, then dive and come up on the other side, perhaps even closer.

Once I'd stopped paddling to watch a seal doing this, and rested my paddle across the boat. The seal kept popping up, closer and closer, each time in a different direction. Then I couldn't see it anymore, and thought it gone, until I looked down and it was immediately next to the kayak, under my hand on the paddle, looking up at me. If I'd straightened my fingers they would have touched its nose!

There appear to be different views on disturbance. I was paddling up on the North Norfolk coast, at some place where they run tripper boats out to see they seals basking (Blakeney?). My companions and I stopped a reasonable distance off the shore to watch the seals on the sandbank as we drifted past on the tide. A couple of tripper boats arrived and shouted at us to clear off, because, they said, the seals were scared of kayaks, and wouldn't come into the water if we were around. (Presumably they didn't mind the tripper boats with their engines, loudspeaker systems, and camera flashes. :rolleyes: )
 
I was anchored alone in a Silhouette in Tollesbury North channel a few years back when the boat lurched, and I thought we had been hit.

Rolled out of bunk, and there was a seal in the cockpit looking at me.

As I reached about for the camera it left. It climbed into a nearby inflatable for a snooze a few minutes later.

Lovely!

Ian
 
Yes, that's the sort of behaviour that worries me somewhat about meeting one of them in our inflatable canoes - particularly as they have a seal-greyish hull. :(

On the other hand, I see that the site for reporting sightings gives very roughly equal numbers of common, grey and 'unknown', and at least a kayak encounter could be close enough to tell their species (http://www.discoverwildlife.com/british-wildlife/how-identify-british-seals). I have seen one on a couple of recent occasions very close in off the Shotley lock and sea wall, but still too far off without binoculars to form an opinion on nose and nostrils.
 
They seem to be not too worried if you pass closely so long as you are quiet - engines certainly seem to spook them. We were rowing the inflatable in the Butley River the other day (a long story) and passed a seal on the mud about 15 feet away, he looked uneasy but stayed put.
 
Cantata said:
They seem to be not too worried if you pass closely so long as you are quiet - engines certainly seem to spook them. We were rowing the inflatable in the Butley River the other day (a long story) and passed a seal on the mud about 15 feet away, he looked uneasy but stayed put.
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A seal popped up near us when going up the Orwell Saturday, and coming down yesterday. Not at all worried, looked at us about 8-10' from boat as we passed at about 5-6 knots under motoe
 
Gladys said:
A seal popped up near us when going up the Orwell Saturday, and coming down yesterday. Not at all worried, looked at us about 8-10' from boat as we passed at about 5-6 knots under motoe
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Saw two on The Orwell on Saturday (or one that was very fast) one between No1 & No2 and another No5.
 
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