An assessment of the status of the common seal Phoca vitulina vitulina in Ireland

Common seals Phoca vitulina vitulina Linnaeus 1758 were surveyed throughout Ireland during the 1978 breeding season. Compared with the abundance of the species in Great Britain, the Irish stock is small. The results are discussed in relation to the activities of man, particularly bounty hunting to protect fisheries, and the availability of suitable breeding localities. Problems relating to stock management, not least of which is that the species is subject to legislation in the south but not in the north, are discussed.