UKDIVING
“ There ’ s no such thing as an average seal ,” says Sue Sayer . “ Just like people , they are all individuals . They travel all over the place ... one of the seals tagged by the Cornwall Seal Group travelled 450km to the Isle of Man , then visited north and south Wales , Ireland and Brittany in northern France before returning to Devon and Dorset . But every seal has its own specific summer pupping and moulting site .”
A seal ’ s first three years are finely balanced in terms of learning , play and survival . “ This is the period when they are most vulnerable ,” Sue explains . “ If they are disturbed regularly , then that neatly balanced metabolic pattern can be kicked into deficit .”
Figures from the Marine Mammal Research Unit at St Andrew ’ s University suggest that in a ‘ good ’ year 40 per cent of the UK ’ s seal pups will die , while in a bad year such as 2018 ( which saw an unusually cold spell , in addition to Storm Emma making landfall in the UK ) the mortality rate can rise to 95 per cent . I remember diving in Lundy that summer - there were some yearlings , but no pups .
Classic fin snuggling
47