Date: January 31, 2007
Subject: Cape Fur Seals Flee North Into Extinction
Press Release : January 31, 2007
Seal Alert-SA
Cape Fur Seals Flee North into
Extinction
Namibian Mainland Seals Fleeing Daily From Namibian
Sealers
As the only
species of seal breeding on the African continent, Cape fur seals
when first sighted by the earliest European explorers, were
described as a "sight honourable to behold" and their island
habitats as, "in mine opinion, there is not an island in the world
more frequented by seabirds and seals".
Named originally
as the Cape fur seal, sealing ensured the complete extermination of
these seals on islands off the Cape. By 1900, they were near
extinction, with 99% of their former islands, remaining extinct to
this day. No mainland colonies existed. This violation by sealers,
forced the government of the day to place seals under the
protection of the Cape Fish Act of 1893.
Annual permitted
population reduction culls continued on islands. By 1940s, 11% of
the remaining seal population had fled to Namibia. By the 1970s,
Seals had fled and established mainland colonies in Namibia, where
50% of the seal population had now settled. By the 1990s it had
risen to 75% of the population, and with it came officially the
name change, from Cape fur seals to South African fur seals, no
doubt to explain the loss of seals in the Cape.
Whilst less than 11% of
today's seal population remains in the Cape with 99% of its former
habitat (islands) still extinct. Namibia continues its annual
population reduction cull on 90% of the babies born annually.
Left in the hands of
politicians, scientists, conservationists and driven by sealers in
Namibia, Cape fur seals will soon flee increasing to its third
African country, Angola. As it does so, and is unnaturally forced,
its food source the further north towards the equator these fur
seals are forced to flee, diminishes, as too, does its chances of
surviving in a hotter climate on the mainland.
Angolan Press Agency, reported
yesterday that Angolan National Institute of Fishing will continue
research on seals developing colonies on its mainland http://allafrica.com/stories/200701300483.html.
A diamond-rich country recently out of a civil-war, there are
already ominous signs, that not only are scientists from
Namibia, South Africa and Angola in disagreement as to why seals
are fleeing north, but that seal culling words, like "keeping the
balance in the ecosystem" and Angolan Law on Biological and Aquatic
Resources states, "the government must adopt the necessary measures
to preserve this species", whilst being enlightened but its South
African and Namibian sealing counter-parts that, "ANGOP has learnt
that for seals to keep alive and in normal activity they need to
eat at least four kilograms of fish daily".
Science speak for population reduction
cull policies. It is unknown what the state of the fisheries in
Angola is, after Russian factory ships and EU purchased 36 million
in a cash payment fishing access, but it is almost certainly worse
than the 447 000 tons of Pelagic removed by South Africa in 2000,
or the 25 000 tons by Namibia.
Climate and fisheries wise, it makes no natural
sense for seals to move north into warmer less abundant waters,
unless the fear and disturbance caused by the Namibian sealing
operations, becomes the unnatural over-riding factor.
Although scientifically it is believed that more
than 50% of the Cape fur seals diet consists of non-commercial fish
species, at four kilograms per seal per day, and the fear that
after South Africa, and then Namibia has succeeded in driven the
over one million seals, from their waters, Angolan's fisheries will
be forced to cope with a sudden influx of 1.4 million tons of
consumption by fish eating seals.
As a one-man organization supported by seal
supporters from over seventy countries, Seal Alert-SA, already
struggling to cope with the seal rescues in just South Africa, has
its work cut out for it protecting seals now in three African
countries.
It only real hope for the Cape fur seals now, is
to have them unbanned from their historic islands in the Cape, and
facilitate their re-introduction.
For the Seals
Francois Hugo Seal Alert-SA
27-21-790 8774