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Despite what animal rights organizations and radical activists would have you believe, the harp seal is not an endangered animal nor is it’s population on the decline. Since the 1970′s the population of harp seals in the North Atlantic has not only increased, it has tripled. The last survey conducted by the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans reported the harp seal population at a record high 5.8 million animals.

With worldwide attention being brought to the collapse of the North Atlantic fish stocks by the media and by documentaries such as ‘The End of the Line” , it is crucial to identify one of the largest consumers and threats to the recovery of the stocks. Each harp seal consumes between 1 and 1.4 metric tonnes of fish each year, and with the exploding population of 5.8 million animals that translates to a consumption of at least 6 million metric tonnes of fish each year. This means that now while the fish stocks are in crisis, the record breaking seal population is consuming more fish than ever before in recorded history, and is not only a threat to the fish, but to its own sustainability.

To put this into perspective, Canada, a world leader in the management, consumption, and export of fish stocks only harvests 0.9 million metric tonnes annually, which includes both coasts (Atlantic and Pacific). The European Union, which has criticized the seal hunt and recently banned the import of  seal products, was identified by the World Wildlife Fund to be the main offender in a 70% increase of destructive cod by-catch. At the 2007 annual meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization the WWF pushed for a cod recovery strategy that included setting a bycatch reduction target of 40 per cent for southern Grand Banks cod. The 40 per cent target was equivalent to a fishing mortality of 420 tonnes, which is estimated to be the maximum the population could withstand to still have some chance of recovery. Unfortunately, a total of 713 tonnes of bycatch was taken in 2008. Of that amount, the EU was responsible for 444 tonnes. These statistics do not account misreporting and illegal activity, which the EU, particularly Spain, has been accused of multiple times in the last 3 decades. Once again, to put this in perspective, â??lowâ? numbers for cod-consumption by harp seals suggest that this species makes up 4% of their diet â?? at the numbers provided, this comes out to 240,000 MT of cod consumed.

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) recognize the sustainable use of wild animal populations to be a cornerstone of their health and conservation. They have placed the harp seal on their list of “Least Concern”. Despite accusations of being cruel and inhumane, the hunting methods Eastern Canadian sealers employ are effective and humane, as shown in veterinary studies carried out by members of Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (2002), the Independent Veterinary Working Group (2005), and the European Union’s own Food Safety Authority (2007). In the latest study on the effectiveness of the methods used in the seal hunt, the methods used were proven to be around 95% and 96% efficient, higher than any other harvest of animals in the world.

Seals provide essential income and wild food to rural people, such as fishermen, to diversify their living at a time of year when employment opportunities are extremely limited. Sealers have stated that their income from sealing can represent from 25-35% of their total income.

Seals are used for their fat, meat and organs as well as their hides. With heart disease being the number one killer in North America, there has been promising research done by scientists using the valves from seal hearts. This research which is aiming towards repairing damaged human hearts using seal heart valves has the potential to save millions of lives.

Links:

Wikipedia -Harp Seal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harp_Seal

Wikipedia -Seal Hunting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seal_hunting

Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Seal FAQ http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/seal-phoque/faq-eng.htm

Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Seal Facts http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/seal-phoque/reports-rapports/facts-faits/facts-faits2008-eng.htm

Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Seal Myths Debunked http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/seal-phoque/myth-eng.htm

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) – European Union Main Offender in Overfishing Cod http://wwf.ca/newsroom/?3600

IUCN Redlist â?? Harp Seal listing, species â??of least concernâ? http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/41671/0

What can you do?

- Sign the Petition for a Universal Declaration on the Ethical Harvest of Seals www.sealsonline.org

- Go to Facebook and join the group “I Support the Seal Hunt“

The total number of species known to be threatened stands at 16,938 according to Endangered Species International. Of the 44,838 species assessed using the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List criteria, 16,928 are listed as threatened with extinction, with millions of species still yet to be assessed. As a result, the number of threatened species is definitely much higher than the current estimate. Threatened species are those listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable.

According to Wikipedia, A vulnerable species is a species which is likely to become endangered unless the circumstances threatening its survival and reproduction improve. An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters. Organisms with a conservation status of critically endangered have an extremely high risk of becoming extinct in the wild or completely extinct in the immediate future.

With so many species of animals threatened today, why are the animal rights protest groups screaming about Canada’s seal hunt? The Canadian harp seal is one of the most abundant animals on the planet. According to the Canadian Government Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Canadian harp seal is listed as “least concerned”. Least Concern (LC) is an IUCN category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, nor Near Threatened. Many common species such as the Pigeon are assigned the Least Concern category. The harp seal population is healthy and abundant. The Northwest Atlantic harp seal population is currently estimated at 5.6 million animals, nearly triple the population seen in the 1970s, and has been at that level for the past ten years.

What animal right protest groups have learned is that through cleverly worded propaganda messages, they can get the public to go running for their chequebooks. The animal rights groups use the Canadian seal hunt as an annual fund-raising event and their attacks fill up their coffers by using emotional pitches and half-truths. The fact is, these groups are actually making more money from the annual Atlantic seal hunt than the sealers themselves earn. Take for example the $77.5 million U.S. the International Fund For Animal Welfare raised last year – it’s easy to see that the seal hunt actually benefits the protest groups. Greenpeace pulls in 35 million dollars a year. PETA makes close to 31 million. HSUS earns a hefty 107 million a year. Fund raising, not protection of species, is often their prime objective.

Animal rights groups were very quick to see the economical gold mine in “Saving” Canadian seals. In 2007, it is estimated that animal rights groups earned nearly 300 million dollars worldwide protesting the seal hunt in that one year. This begs to question, how much money have the animal rights groups made since they started protesting the Canadian seal hunt in the 1970s? The figures are staggering. To put it into some perspective, the animal rights protest industry earns enough money each year to buy every last seal hunting vessel in Newfoundland – every single year.

In 2008 the sealers earned approximately 8.25 million dollars directly from the seal hunt. That is 250 thousand seals harvested at $33 (Canadian) each. The estimated earnings by the major players in the seal protest industry stands at 330 million dollars. For the sealers to earn their living, they require a ship and crew, expense money,and fuel; additionally, they need to be willing to take significant risks (four Canadian sealers died in 2008) for which they get paid very little.
The majority of Seal hunt protesters on the other hand, only require a computer, a chair and their hot coffee, for which they get paid their 330 million dollars.

The moral of the story here seems to be to get out of sealing and get into the seal protest business.

Animal rights protest groups argue against the Canadian seal hunt, a hunt for one of the most numerous animals on the planet, solely for the purpose of fund-raising. All the while, 16,938 species of animals that are actually in danger of extinction seem to be ignored.

Links:

http://www.endangeredspeciesinternational.org/overview2.html