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🇦🇺 Australia /Environment & Climate

Seal numbers plummet on Victorian island amid pollution concerns

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Seal pup numbers on Deen Maar Island, Victoria, have drastically decreased, with a 40% drop since 2017 and over 65% since 2007.
  • Experts link the decline to pollution causing hair loss (alopecia) in seals, impairing their ability to regulate body temperature and feed.
  • The affected seals, particularly pups, are becoming skinnier, raising concerns about their survival, especially with the recent detection of H5N1 bird flu nearby.

Deen Maar Island, a remote location off Victoria's south-west coast, once hosted Australia's largest fur seal colony. Twenty years ago, an estimated 2,000 seal pups were born there each summer. However, recent counts reveal a stark decline, with only 700 pups spotted in February, marking a reduction of over 40% since 2017 and more than 65% since 2007.

When their hair falls out, they can't keep warm, and if they can't spend much time in the water, then they can't feed for as long.

— Dave WilliamsSea country coordinator for the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, explaining the impact of hair loss on seals.

Experts attribute this population crash to pollution, which is causing widespread hair loss, or alopecia, among the seals. Dave Williams, sea country coordinator for the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation, observed significant fur loss in the seals. "When their hair falls out, they can't keep warm, and if they can't spend much time in the water, then they can't feed for as long," Williams explained.

The pups who are depending on the mother suffer; they end up being smaller pups, and if they haven't got enough fat to keep them warm, they may not make [it through] that first year.

— Dave WilliamsDave Williams describes the critical condition of seal pups affected by the declining health of their mothers.

This condition affects the seals' thermoregulation, leading to poor health. The pups are particularly vulnerable, becoming skinnier due to their mothers' inability to feed them adequately. "The pups who are depending on the mother suffer; they end up being smaller pups, and if they haven't got enough fat to keep them warm, they may not make [it through] that first year," Williams stated.

We've seen a surprising number of individuals with alopecia.

— Dave WilliamsDave Williams expresses concern over the high number of seals exhibiting alopecia.

Adding to the concern, the H5N1 strain of bird flu has recently been detected in Portland, a town approximately 25 kilometers from Deen Maar Island. Marine researcher Rebecca McIntosh noted that such widespread alopecia has never been observed in other Australian fur seal colonies, highlighting the unique and severe threat facing the Deen Maar population. The local custodians are worried about the seals' weakened state making them more susceptible to the virus.

You only see it at Deen Maar Island and [nearby] Cape Bridgewater, [but it's] mostly at Deen Maar.

— Rebecca McIntoshMarine researcher Rebecca McIntosh points out the localized nature of the alopecia affecting seals at Deen Maar Island.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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