MINUTES OF THE 1
st MEETING OF THE SEALS FORUM
WEDNESDAY 23
RD OCTOBER 2002
Attendees
Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs
Department (SEERAD) Scottish Natural Heritage
(SNH)
Fisheries Research Services (FRS) - Freshwater
Laboratory
Sea Mammal Research Unit, St Andrews University , (SMRU)
Marine Biological Station, Millport
Marine Conservation Society
(MCS)
Scottish Society for the Protection and Cruelty to
Animals (SSPCA)
WWF Scotland
Salmon Net Fishing Association of Scotland
The Atlantic Salmon
Trust
Anglo-Scottish Fishermen's
Association
Association of Salmon Fishery Boards
(ASFB's)
Introductions
The Chair welcomed all participants to the
meeting and indicated that the main purpose of this
initial meeting was to discuss and agree the terms of
reference for the Group and to agree next steps.
Background
Following the success of the stakeholder seminar
hosted by the Sea Mammal Research Unit at St Andrews University on 27 June 2002 , SEERAD wrote to all those organisations present at
or invited to the seminar to obtain views on how to
progress seals issues. The general view was that there
would be merit in establishing some form of forum or
working group in which seal research and management issues
could be openly discussed. This meeting represents the
initial stage in this process. ACTION: SEERAD to
circulate a list of invitees.
Legal Context
SEERAD have obligations on seal conservation
under the Habitats Directive, but need also to address
legitimate fishery concerns about seal
predation.
The Conservation of Seals Act 1970 places
restrictions on methods used to take or kill seals and
specifies close seasons for each species during which seals
can only be taken or killed under licence. In light of the
recent PDV outbreak, the Conservation of Seals ( Scotland ) Order 2002 was introduced, extending the close
season to the whole year for common seals throughout Scotland , and grey seals in the Moray Firth .
Both grey and common seals are listed under the
Habitats Directive and Member States are obliged to
designate special areas of conservation with a view to
the maintenance of favourable conservation status. In
these areas, Member States must take steps to avoid
deterioration of habitats and significant disturbance
of species. There is a further requirement to ensure
that taking or exploitation of the species, whether
within an SAC or not, is compatible with the
maintenance of favourable conservation status. The
Directive also restricts the methods of killing or
capture which may be used.
Special Areas of Conservation (SACs)
Under the Habitats Directive SACs have been
selected in areas deemed crucial for the lifecycle of
both seal species in known breeding/haul out sites.
JNCC are presently in the process of considering
additional SACs beyond 12 miles.
Grey Seals. The UK , and Scotland in particular, has a specific responsibility
for the conservation of grey seals, with a
significant percentage of the EU and world
population in these waters. At present there are 6
candidate marine SACs for grey seals in Scotland with 47% of pup production
covered.
Common Seals: Common seals tend to live in more discrete
population units, with a more patchy distribution
around the UK coastline. This makes SAC site selection more
difficult, with candidate sites identified on the
basis of "regular occupation" and species numbers.
There are currently 8 candidate sites for common
seals in Scotland , and one further possible site, with 18% of
the population covered.
Scientific Advice
The Scottish Executive receives scientific advice
on seals from a range of experts including the Natural
Environment Research Council's (NERC) Special Committee
on Seals (SCOS), SMRU, FRS and SNH.
Current Research
There is extensive research on seals being undertaken
by SMRU and funded by NERC, both via the SMRU core research
programme and specific research grants. In addition
to this work, SMRU are engaged in a three-year project,
supported by SEERAD and DEFRA, to identify the main
components of grey seal diet. Existing knowledge is based
on data gathered in 1985, and this project will update this
for current seal and fish populations. Faecal samples from
seal haul out sites will be collected and analysed. It is
hoped that fatty acid analysis can be developed which may
offer a more accurate means of assessing seal diet in
future.
FRS - Freshwater Laboratory are involved in a
joint project with SMRU on seal /salmon interactions.
The project will focus on the use of faecal analysis
and DNA based techniques to determine the presence of
salmon otoliths within seal scats. This will provide
more conclusive information on the consumption of
salmon, and especially smolts, by seal
populations.
SEERAD, SNH, SMRU and DSFB's are presently
developing a scientific proposal on seal management in
rivers and estuaries. This project will comprise a
series of stages:
development and application of a cetacean
friendly seal scarer in areas where an
appreciable number of salmon deaths result from
seal predation,
studying behavioural interactions between
salmon and marine mammals at known feeding hot
spots (within rivers/estuaries and at specific
offshore locations); and
the quantification of predator damage
within salmon SACs.
Funding will be sought through EU LIFE and
NERC-Connect B bids.
Phocine Distemper Virus (PDV)
It was confirmed that a total of 3173 seal carcasses
had been washed up in the UK since the beginning of the PDV outbreak. In England seal mortality has totalled 2942, suggesting the
presence of a more virulent form of the virus than in 1988.
The full impact of PDV has still to affect Scotland with only a small number of confirmed cases. It was
indicated that grey seals may suffer sub-lethal effects,
particularly on the east coast where the pupping season has
been concurrent with the outbreak. PDV is thought to cause
premature birth and abortions in grey seal colonies. During
the 1988 outbreak reduced grey seal pup production was
witnessed.
Terms of Reference and Mechanisms
It was agreed that the name "Seal Working Group"
should be adopted and that the remit of the group
should focus on three main objectives:
To meet the UK 's nature conservation
obligations;
To seek to minimise the economic loss to
fishermen and fish farmers, and
To seek to maximise the economic benefit
from tourism.
Thereafter bullet points would suggest the methods by
which these can be achieved. ACTION : SEERAD to revise and circulate the Terms of
Reference.
It was agreed that to encourage open discussion
Chatham House rules should be adopted for future
meetings. ACTION : SEERAD to circulate.
Research
It was agreed that the Working Group needed to be
aware of the latest state of research on seal populations,
on the interactions between seals and commercial fisheries
and between seals and fish farming and on existing and
potential mitigation measures. This should encompass
both UK and any relevant international seal research on these
issues. This review process should include the
identification of key gaps in the current research to allow
the Working Group to discuss and identify priority areas
for future research. It was agreed that the next meeting
should include a presentation from SMRU on the latest SCOS
report on seal populations. This would provide a focus for
further discussion. ACTION : SMRU to provide an overview of the latest SCOS
annual report on seal populations for the next
meeting.
Data Collection and Dissemination
It was generally agreed that there were
limitations in existing knowledge of local seal
observations and local seal management practice. A
great deal of data in these respective areas was
locally available or could be collected. DSFBs have
access to information of potential scientific value on
seal damage. Knowledge of existing seal management
methods outwith the close seasons is limited at
present. This sort of local data needed to be
collected, on a scientific and non-attributable basis,
to inform the discussions of the Working Group. It was
suggested that this could be achieved using a data
collection protocol developed by scientists working in
collaboration with fishery and fish farming interests.
The results would then be analysed and presented to the
Working Group for discussion.
Information
It was considered that there was a lack of
knowledge regarding current conservation measures
protecting seals and existing provisions for the
protection of fisheries and fish farms. It was also
accepted that there was wide variation in existing seal
management and mitigation measures on a local basis. In
some areas no known seal management exists but whether
this was because there was no perceived problem or no
effective solution was unclear. It was therefore
considered important that the Working Group, wherever
possible, should seek to identify examples of good
practice in terms of seal management and mitigation
measures and to disseminate these as widely as
possible. The adoption of effective non-lethal
mitigation measures should be a high priority.
Working Group Structure
It was necessary to decide how frequently the
core Working Group will meet but there was feeling that
it should focus on substantial issues. It was agreed
that members of this core Working Group should be
expected to commit time and effort to it. It was
important that this group did not appear remote or
inaccessible but that individuals could "self-select"
their level of involvement depending on the time they
were able to offer.
It was suggested that it might be useful to hold
an Annual Meeting where a broader group of people could
be informed about and discuss the work of the core
Working Group.
There was general agreement that a sub-group
structure would facilitate progress on specific issues
and allow substantial bits of work to be tackled in a
more focussed way. The sub-groups would then report
back or submit papers to Working Group meetings.
It was agreed that Working Papers could play a
significant role by allowing members or sub-groups to
complete significant tasks between meetings. ACTION : SEERAD would invite suggestions for the work
programme of the Working Group and provide a draft for
consideration at the next meeting.
Date of next meeting
The next meeting will take place on
Thursday 30 January 2003, at 10.30am. Venue to be
confirmed.
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