It's amazing what can happen when you live and let live and give animals space. The BBC reported a seal colony on the English coastline is thriving in peace thanks to a lack of human contact. Managed by the National Trust, the Orford Ness colony in Suffolk has the distinction of being the county's first breeding colony of grey seals.
Even the site rangers conduct their headcount of the growing colony from a distance. As of November 2024, the Orford Ness colony likely has over 400 seals, including 80 pups born this season. The population number has doubled from where it was three years ago.
Matt Wilson, the National Trust's countryside manager, proclaimed, "We're really lucky. It's part of their natural movement of colonies anyway, so they've moved down, we think, from Lincolnshire and Norfolk colonies."
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All the time 💯 If you're in the area, you can view the cute seals from a distance in the summertime. Restricted space appears to have been a major factor in the population continuing to procreate well. Matt Wilson told the BBC that factors such as minimal human disturbance, the area's "natural shelter barrier" from bad weather, and the proximity to food sources in the North Sea gave the colony significant growth potential.
So, why do seals need such a protected colony from people? In addition to increasingly warm temperatures that have reduced seal habitats in the Arctic, many seal colonies have declined due to hunting by humans who use their blubber, pelts, and meat.
That is why there has been a crackdown on selling seal parts and those of other endangered animals. The United States, countries of the E.U., Taiwan, Mexico, and Russia have banned trading seal products. Plus, some bad tourists have been caught getting way too close to these animals.
People can do their part to protect seals by keeping their distance if spotting them close by, not littering on their beach habitats, not buying products poached from them, and being careful when fishing. Hooks can be dangerous to seals, so consider using circle, barbless, and dissolvable hooks that are safer for marine life. Learn more about the Endangered Species Act, which can help you avoid unknowingly buying poached items or disturbing their habitats.
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