Research Document - 2014/015
Updated Estimates of Harp Seal Removals in the Northwest Atlantic
By G. B. Stenson
Abstract
The Northwest Atlantic harp seal (Pagophilus groenlandicus) is hunted for subsistence purposes in Greenland and the Canadian Arctic, and as part of a commercial catch in southern Canadian waters. In addition to reported catches, animals are killed but not landed or reported (‘struck and lost’), and are taken as by-catch in commercial fishing gear. Information on catch levels and age structure of removals are necessary for accurate population estimation and responsible management. The objective of this report is to update estimates of removals for the period 1952-2013. Commercial and subsistence hunts account for the majority of the removals. Canadian commercial catches averaged around 288,000 harp seals prior to the introduction of quotas in 1972. Between 1972 and the demise of the large vessel hunt in 1982, an average of 165,000 seals was taken annually. Catches decreased after 1982 and remained low, averaging approximately 52,000, until 1995. Annual catches, consisting primarily of young of the year, increased to an average of 272,600 between 1996 and 2006. Beginning in 2007, catches declined due to ice conditions and poor markets, reaching a low of approximately 40,389 in 2011. Over the past decade, the vast majority of seals taken were between 1 and 3 months of age with over 99 % of the seals taken since 1999 have been one year of age or less. Since 1980, Greenland catches increased relatively steadily to a peak of approximately 100,000 in 2000. Since then, catches have fluctuated between 65,000 and 90,000 per year. There are no recent estimates of the age structure of seals taken in Greenland but the available data indicate that a significant proportion of seals taken are adults. Catches in the Canadian Arctic are not well documented but appear to be low with likely fewer than 1,000 harp seals taken annually in recent years. Estimates of harp seal by-catch in the Newfoundland lumpfish fishery increased from less than 1,000 in the early 1970s to a peak of 46,400 in 1994. Since then, estimates of this type of by-catch declined to approximately 5,000 by 2003. Although lumpfish catches have generally remained low, actual by-catch levels are unknown. Low numbers of harp seals are also caught in United States (US).based fisheries. Combining the various sources of mortality, the average total removals from 1952-82 was approximately 388,000, but declined to 178,000 per year between 1983 and 1995. From 1996-2004, higher catches in Canada and Greenland resulted in average annual removals of 472,700. Since 2008, reduced Canadian catches have lowered total removals to an average of 245,500 harp seals per year. The greatest uncertainty in these estimates are associated with the Greenland catch, and struck and lost rates, although changes in the latter are unlikely to affect the abundance estimates significantly.
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