Seal season starts in Delaware in the winter, and last year the MERR Institute, responsible for seal monitoring and rescue, had 185 reported sightings.
Delaware’s seal population is migratory, but in the last decade MERR has been monitoring an emerging colony of seals.
Rather than seals being born in northern areas of the country like New England and then migrating down to Delaware in the winter to spring months, this new colony is seeing some pups starting to be born in the First State.
MERR Institute Executive Director Suzanne Thurman says this emerging colony could lead to some seals taking up a more permanent residence in Delaware.
“So we’re just keeping an eye on the pups to see if they stay, if they remain in the area. Because they didn’t come here from somewhere else and have to return. They’re actually born here, so we don’t know if they would know to go anywhere else. They’re not truly migratory like whales are,” explained Thurman.
Seals tend to start leaving in April, so whether or not these pups stay remains to be seen.
To keep the marine mammals safe, MERR asks Delawareans to follow a couple of guidelines to keep the marine mammals safe.
Boaters are asked to keep a 300 foot distance from seals, and those on land are asked to keep a distance of at least 150 feet.
“Animals become stressed very easily and then that can trigger things that become ailments that weren’t there before,” said Thurman. “It’s just so frightening to them. It can also cause them to go back in the water prematurely, in which if they’re truly exhausted they could drown.”
In addition, keeping dogs on leashes when walking on the beach is vital during seal season, which runs until May.
Seals are wild animals and may bite when threatened, and transmit diseases if touched.
MERR requests that this year beach goers continue to contact them if they spot a seal.
That helps them keep track of the number of seals migrating to Delaware, rescue seals if needed, and monitor the emerging seal colony.
The MERR Institute can be reached at (302) 228-5029.
