Too Many Seals

[maddmatt]

when i'm incharge........

get rid of the marine mammal protection act and bring back the bounty!!

death to the seals!! death to the seals!! death to the seals!!

[GonnaCatchABig1]

just wait.. nature has funny ways of fixing it self. more sharks will eventually find them.

of course since sharks aren't cute and cuddly we will then have a "shark problem" and measure will be taken to rid our waters of the evil killing machines feeding on the cute little seal babies.

[DZ]

Originally Posted by GonnaCatchABig1

just wait.. nature has funny ways of fixing it self. more sharks will eventually find them.

More likely it will be disease or a virus that controls the seal population.

Just recently out on the west coast authorities found quite a few dead sea lions that were shot and killed around the steelhead runs.
I can envision that happening here.

DZ

[FishermanTim]

Just remember to yell "He's coming right for us !" right before you shoot. (from "Hunting with Jimbo and Ned on South Park.)

[2na]

Why so madd, Matt?

[likwid]

Originally Posted by maddmatt

when i'm incharge........

get rid of the marine mammal protection act and bring back the bounty!!

death to the seals!! death to the seals!! death to the seals!!

and this is why you will never be "in charge"

[FishermanTim]

Here's a thought..... Since people have been catching (and killing) sharks for food and fun, we had already set the stage for this type of explosive growth of seal population. Secondly, since"we" had enected strict rules for the harvest of specific fish species, we allowed those species to make somewhat of a comeback, providing plenty of feeding opportunities for the seals. (see the vicious circle?)
If the seals are not a completely indigenous species 'round these parts, but more of a migrating species, then why not push them back towards a migratory lifestyle..... by allowing culling of the heards.
If the seals feel threatened, they should leave the area, and if they are threatened enough, maybe leave for good.
Think about it: Exactly what purpose do the seals fill in our watery environment? At least the sharks help clean the ocean of dead/dying animals. When was the last time you saw a shark attack a fish on your line or heard of seals doing ANYTHING except looking cute with those puppy-dog eyes?


All the "touchy-feely" tree-huggin, PETA-lovin weirdos will be singing a different song when the seals start wiping out ground fish along their favorite "private beaches" and the seals take over the beach and turn it into a festering cesspool. This is our real-life "nature-gone-wild" scenario, and we can't do a thing (legally).

I wonder what grilled seal taste like?

[likwid]

Originally Posted by FishermanTim

All the "touchy-feely" tree-huggin, PETA-lovin weirdos will be singing a different song when the seals start wiping out ground fish along their favorite "private beaches" and the seals take over the beach and turn it into a festering cesspool.

We already beat the seals to that.

[Slipknot]

Originally Posted by FishermanTim

All the "touchy-feely" tree-huggin, PETA-lovin weirdos will be singing a different song when the seals start wiping out ground fish along their favorite "private beaches" and the seals take over the beach and turn it into a festering cesspool.

Originally Posted by likwid

We already beat the seals to that.

Likwid, maybe you haven't noticed Pleasant Bay and P-Town harbor, I understand your point though, but the seals have a LARGE part in the loss of flounder in Pleasant bay. And I don't like swimming in seal poop anymore than anyone else
We have to ask ourselves who is more important in the food chain, seals or us? I know which way I lean.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Slipknot

We have to ask ourselves who is more important in the food chain, seals or us? I know which way I lean.

In the grand scheme of things? They are.
Fish are a luxury for you.
This isn't SE Asia where you catch a fish to feed your family for 3 days.

[RIROCKHOUND]

To slip thats true likwid, but seals are having an impact on commercial fisheries, and that is not a luxury.

[Slipknot]

Originally Posted by likwid

In the grand scheme of things? They are.
Fish are a luxury for you.
This isn't SE Asia where you catch a fish to feed your family for 3 days.

not yet

but if we keep going away from producing food, then we will be in trouble as a nation.

I find the deceasing farming in the country scary. We should be producing more food not less.

What purpose do seals on Cape Cod serve? are they food for other animals? no, they're poop is food for cod which just gives them worms. They just eat everything in sight and cause more problems than they are worth and you or anyone else will never change my mind, they can survive somewhere else and contribute to their grand scheme. I can easily fish elsewhere for my luxury as you call it , and I can buy fish at the market since I can afford it but I choose to catch my own sometimes. If we are forced to share the beach with those bacteria dirty animals, then so be it.

[Grapenuts]

Originally Posted by maddmatt

when i'm incharge........

get rid of the marine mammal protection act and bring back the bounty!!

death to the seals!! death to the seals!! death to the seals!!

Well! if you can't kill them perhaps the brok-back dune gang in PT can breed them out.

[Rappin Mikey]

Likwid, the way you break down people's posts is very passive aggressive. I have a list of questions and statements for you.
1. Are you a biologist?
2. When was the last time you fished from shore on the outter cape?
3. Do you like gay tuna?
4. When was the last time you tried to rake sandeels inshore??
5. I believe the horsehead seals are different then the seals at Sea World
6. Before I made my statements I said don't quote me these were told to me a few years ago and someone could go digging if they wanted to.
7. My dad is an engineer, he is a very logical person, not the type to make things up out of the blue. The data that he told me was quoted from something he had read. Again this was a few years ago so I might not be accurrate.
8. When was the last time you fished from shore on the outter Cape? From your comments I would guess it was a very long time.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Rappin Mikey

Likwid, the way you break down people's posts is very passive aggressive. I have a list of questions and statements for you.

Because its the same things over and over without any evidence. It gets old.

1: Nope, but what I quote is from biologists

2: Last fall

3: I loves all the tunas equally. Om nom nom nom.

4: I don't rake, I go by what I see in the water.

5: Grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) a larger seal, are being seen more frequently but harbour seals still outnumber them. The grey seal population in the Bay of Fundy appears to be on the increase. Males reach lengths of 245cm (8') and weigh 450kg (990lb), females 215cm (7') and 270kg (600lb). The head is long and the seal is often called the"horsehead" seal.
Kinda like aussies call bluefish tailors. Same thing.

6: Ok, but too many people run around with facts and figures that came from someone else that said something else that they read in a book that was written in 1902.

7: I can provide links and/or books to prove what I say.

8: Repeat, last fall. Thats not very "long ago". And I'm down there just about every other weekend just for the hell of it. (Including all winter long. Nice place to take the dog for a walk.)

If people (in general) don't educate themselves, they're doomed to failure. Walking into something (say the seal problem) blindly with just speculation and heresay won't solve the issue. It'll just make it worse.

[Rappin Mikey]

However you want to look at it, or where ever you get your data from, it is visibly obvious that the seals population is in the midst of an explosion. You might see balls of bait "offshore" but ask anyone that has been raking sandeels over the years and you'll get the same response I'm giving you. I haven't seen one skate pulled up on the beach in three years. I would say roughly 50% of the fish I catch now are chased by seals, as opposed to 0% four years ago. You hear it all over the outter Cape that buisnesses are struggling. I just find it odd that someone who is out there as much as you claim you are hasn't noticed any of this. I know seals can't be held 100% responsible for all of this. But I also do know that they are contributing to the problem and to close your eyes to the whole matter confuses me a little bit. Anyway, that's all I have to say on this. You all can flame on now.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Rappin Mikey

You hear it all over the outter Cape that buisnesses are struggling.

There was a winter long series about the cape and life on NPR.

They detailed a ton of issues with the cape from property prices to lack of real jobs being the cause of the decline (People who live out there year around talking about this, not NPR). Not once did they mention seals.

You'd think if it were a major cause like people are making it out to be that they would have talked about it?