Officials keep 'open mind' as 41 dead seals found at Te Oka Bay, Canterbury

Sunday, 5 August 2018

Kerry Munroe said he was shocked to make the grim discovery on Saturday.

Officials are keeping an open mind about what might have caused the deaths of 41 New Zealand fur seals found at Te Oka Bay, near Christchurch.

The Department of Conservation sent staff out to investigate on Sunday after a couple counted 25 seals while out walking on Saturday.

A number of pups were among the dead seals found on Te Oka Bay, Canterbury.

Manager Andy Thompson said the seals had likely been dead for two to three weeks.

'Our ranger counted 41 dead seals. One was an adult seal and the rest were pups at weaning age,' he said.

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'They were found high up on the beach, above the high tide mark, and we think they were probably swept there by high seas.'

It would be a few days before post mortem examinations might be known, but the department would keep an eye on the 12,000 or so New Zealand fur seals, or kekeno, that live in the area, Thompson said.

'We are keeping an open mind but at this stage, given the circumstances, we are leaning towards natural causes.'

Earlier on Sunday he said younger seals could get knocked around by rough seas which could cause them to die, or a virus could also be a possible cause of death.

A number of the bodies will now be sent to Massey University where they would undergo necropsies.

Kerry Munroe reported the incident to the Ministry of Primary Industries on Saturday after spotting the dead seals while walking on the beach with his wife.

Munroe said they were shocked to find 'mums with pups' and other groups of single seals dead at the site.

'It's not what you're expecting to see, we just wanted to go out for a quiet Saturday afternoon walk.'

On Saturday, marine mammal expert Ingrid Visser said the discovery was 'very disturbing' and said it was not common to see a large number of seals die clustered together.

In May last year, between 30 and 40 fur seal pups were found dead on the coastline just south of Ohau Point in Kaikoura.

DOC's northern South Island operations manager Roy Grose said at the time the pups showed no sign of physical injury and were in good body condition, with normal blubber thickness.

They could not be sure what killed the pups, but examinations of the bodies suggested pneumonia was the most probable cause, he said.