Salish sea seals eat 86% of smolts

Habitat Key for Restoration of Healthy Salmon and Orcas

http://www.yelmonline.com/opinion/columnists/article_a679f300-390a-11e8-9aa2-8bb61a87405d.html

"Two of the biggest impacts to orcas are other marine mammals themselves, such as harbor seals and California sea lions. Like orcas, they are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, but unlike orcas, their populations in Puget Sound have exploded in recent years. Today seals and sea lions are eating far more salmon than are harvested by Indian and non-Indian fishermen combined, denying orcas the food they desperately need. A joint tribal, state and federal effort is needed to address the overpopulation of harbor seals and California sea lions along the coast and in Puget Sound."
 
WE need to produce nice garmets like seal blankets, seal purses, seal boots, seal wallets, seal jackets, seal hats, seal biker pants, seal vests, /// there is so much we can do with a commercial seal harvest and get people working and making beautiful seal products that really signify Canadiana.
 
Reel Time said:
WE need to produce nice garmets like seal blankets, seal purses, seal boots, seal wallets, seal jackets, seal hats, seal biker pants, seal vests, /// there is so much we can do with a commercial seal harvest and get people working and making beautiful seal products that really signify Canadiana.
Click to expand...
Don’t forget seal skin ski bindings like Super Dave Ozzbourn used to use!
 
Interesting that the federal govt is paying to eradicate deer in Haida Gwaii, hiring sharpshooters from New Zealand and the USA along with Haida and other locals to kill the deer in order to protect vegetation and allow it to recover. They are shooting these deer from low flying helicopters and from boats.

It's too bad salmon aren't plants, the feds may have approved a seal cull for the salmon "to recover from foraging"!!! quote from the article on the deer eradication from todays vancouver sun.
 
When you say the "feds", nicnat - do you mean in the parks?
 
Thanks for the details, nicnat. It states in the article that the islands involved in the eradication program — Ramsay (largest at 1,600 hectares, and the primary focus), Murchison, Bischof, Faraday, House,and Hotspring — are grouped within Juan Perez Sound within Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site.
 
How is the deer kill related to seals? They are getting rid of an introduced species non native to those islands that has changed the ecology. Seals and sea lions are native and have returned to population levels that existed before man began killing them.
 
california said:
How is the deer kill related to seals? They are getting rid of an introduced species non native to those islands that has changed the ecology. Seals and sea lions are native and have returned to population levels that existed before man began killing them.
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I think the relation is pretty clear. Both species are in over abundance and they both destroy species that mankind want to flourish. I wish I could sit back and not mind watching seals nuke the salmon population like you seem to be able to do, especially knowing this also means the end of the SRKW population, but I guess I’m just greedy... I like catching and eating salmon!
 
The relationship is limited to mankind being responsible for the destruction of the islands ecology by introducing a species that men found fun to hunt and the destruction of the salmon resource through habitat destruction and over fishing. Seals are just a scapegoat. Just like they were on the east coast. Where seal populations recovered despite no cod once the hunt was reduced to low levels, and the cod are now recovering in the presence of close to historic level seal populations.
 
So let’s just cross our fingers that the salmon is will recover? And the seals are being falsely accused for contributing to the decline of salmon? This is enlightening!
 
This is a FISHING forum and people here are trying to come up with a solution to a problem that will one day prevent FISHING.. maybe for this topic you should join a forum that helps to protect the seals instead.
 
Yeah a FORUM. Maybe you should look up what that means, a repository for various ideas and opinions, not just yours. Just because I disagree with you doesn't mean I need to go start a new forum. My opinion is a seal kill will do little to turn around salmon populations. If FN people want to hunt some and use the meat I dont have a problem. There are some specific situations like the Bonneville dam, although man made, that justify removal of specific problem animals and there are probably some such situations in BC, so I'm not for protection. Just not for a random slaughter with little justification it will do much of anything.
 
Yes, it is a forum, and just because we are on different sides on this topic doesn’t mean I don’t value your opinions. You often like to challenge ideas amd that’s a good thing.
I just see the title of this thread and believe that seals are a problem. I see it when I go fishing, which I am just loading up to do right now!
If i do get lucky enough to get into a good one I’ll let you know if I lost it to a seal ;)
 
california said:
Yeah a FORUM. Maybe you should look up what that means, a repository for various ideas and opinions, not just yours. Just because I disagree with you doesn't mean I need to go start a new forum. My opinion is a seal kill will do little to turn around salmon populations. If FN people want to hunt some and use the meat I dont have a problem. There are some specific situations like the Bonneville dam, although man made, that justify removal of specific problem animals and there are probably some such situations in BC, so I'm not for protection. Just not for a random slaughter with little justification it will do much of anything.
Click to expand...

I assume you are aware of the exploding population of Seals and Sea Lions on the South Vancouver Island, including in river estuaries. There is no end of scientific evidence supporting this and most of us who fish regularly have had first hand experience of a Seal or Sea Lion snatching a salmon right off our fishing lines, not just once, but often. In some cases on some trips 3 or even 4 out of 4 salmon. You see the brown eyed thieves following your boat!
No one is talking about a random slaughter, just getting these predators back to the level of the past. Losing a salmon to a Seal or Sea Lion was not an issue in the past!!
 
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