[SEMCO] Upcoming Lectures focus on Gray Seals

[Melissa Lowe]

For Immediate Release:									Contacts:	
January 9, 2007			Melissa Lowe (Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary): 508 349-2615

DO SEALS IMPACT FISHERIES? 
Lectures Discuss Seal Biology and Current Research that May Provide Answers

South Wellfleet, MA. -  In the early 1980s gray seals started to recolonize the coastal waters and isolated beaches around Cape Cod. Since then, the gray seal population has dramatically increased and the "thousands" of seals reported in our region of the Cape have given rise to successful eco-tourism and, more recently, concern over the seals' impact to local fisheries. Research studying the diet of gray seals is the subject of one of two public lectures held at the Eldredge Public Library in Chatham.

On Thursday, January 11 at 6:30 p.m. Bob Prescott of Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary will introduce the "Nature of Seals" with a presentation on the species of seals that inhabit the coastal waters around Cape Cod. He will also discuss their identification, natural history, biology and population status. 

The following week, January 18 at 6:30 p.m., Kristen Ampela will provide an overview of her research studying the diet and foraging behavior of gray seals off Monomoy. Ms. Ampela is a Ph.D. candidate at the City University of New York. Using satellite telemetry, scat and stomach content analysis, and blubber sampling, she determines what species of fish comprise the seals' diet. While the results of her work are preliminary and it is hard to quantify the impact of seal predation on fisheries, the information she is gathering is important when evaluating seal-fishery interactions.
 
These FREE lectures are sponsored by Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. Both talks will be held in Chatham at the Eldredge Public Library. While they are free, participants are encouraged to call the Wellfleet Bay Sanctuary at 508-349-2615 for information or to pre-register.

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The Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary is located on the west side of Route 6, immediately north of the Eastham/Wellfleet town line.  Trails are open daily 8 am to dusk.  Sanctuary admission is free for members; $5 adults, $3 children for non-members. Call (508) 349-2615 for information.

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Melissa Lowe
Education Coordinator

Massachusetts Audubon Society
Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary
PO Box 236, South Wellfleet, MA 02663
508-349-2615 (phone), 508-349-2632 (fax)
mlowe at massaudubon.org

"Protecting the Nature of Massachusetts"
www.massaudubon.org/wellfleetbay