Top of the Pups

Farne Island Grey Seal Pups on the up

Over 1,600 born this autumn/winter

Today's seal pup outside Brownsman cottage

Adult Seals galore across Brownsman

Saturday 12th January comments: Today brought our final seal count of the 2012 (and early 2013) season. The finish line has been crossed and the islands have experienced another noticeable increase in the population. This mirrors the pattern shown in other east coast Grey seal colonies, although we've not shown the huge increases that the Lincolnshire and Norfolk colonies have experienced.

With a further 11 new pups to add to our total, the Farnes have now had 1,603 pups born across these rocky shores since the first on 21^st September 2012. It’s been an epic autumn/winter but what will the autumn of 2013 bring? Yet more increases?

Major Seal colonies on the Farnes:

Staple Island 463

Brownsman 373

South Wamses 380

North Wamses 279

Overall total: 1,603

The two other major Grey Seal colonies down the English east coast have also experience record numbers of pups born with counts including:

Farne Islands (Northumberland) 1,603

Donna Nook (Lincolnshire) 1,525

Blakeney Point (Norfolk) 1,220

Overall it’s a very healthy picture and now we’ll have plenty to consider over the forthcoming weeks and months. We still await news from the Scottish colonies, but without doubt, its top of the pups for the Farne Islands.