A seal found dead along the Kent coast appears to have been shot in the head, a wildlife expert fears.
Nik Mitchell found the large, adult grey seal at Pegwell Bay, near Ramsgate and says he believes the “suspicious hole” he saw in its face is most likely to have been a gunshot wound.
Warning: Distressing images below
It has now been removed by the council, which says it has now reported its death for further investigation.
However, Mr Mitchell believes the sea mammal – which washed up on the former hoverport site two weeks ago – could have been illegally killed due to an injury on its head.
The 41-year-old told KentOnline: “I sadly see lots of dead seals because I’m always out and about on the coast.
“It didn’t seem to have any large obvious injuries and of course, it could have died of age or illness but it did have a very suspicious hole that went quite deep into its face and I know that unfortunately sometimes seals get shot.
“It’s often in the head because that’s the part above water.”
“There is not really any other way a seal would get a deep small hole in its face like that.
“It’s not like they would swim into a spike and this is certainly not consistent with propeller strike or fighting.”
In 2018, one of the animals was confirmed to have been shot after washing up in Margate.
An autopsy on the pregnant female found metal embedded in its skull.
Mr Mitchell said: “Unfortunately some people consider seals competition for fish and this is a big problem up in Scotland on fish farms.
“However it’s hard to know what goes through some peoples’ minds and it could’ve been anyone.
“It would have been a proper firearm, not an air rifle.”
Pictures show a small, deep, cylindrical wound on the seal’s snout.
Thanet District Council says the animal was photographed and reported to be in good condition, meaning it was not necessary to report it to the UK Cetacean Strandings Investigation Programme (CSIP), the responsible body.
However, the wildlife expert believes the seal’s cause of death should have been looked into further.
He explained: “I visited it many times thinking about the possibility of it being shot, I reported it to the council for collection which is standard practice.
“I really wish there had been more official investigation into the death of this seal.
“It’s an injury of serious concern.
“I’ve learnt a lot from this and I’m going to be purchasing a metal-detecting pen, and in future, I will be contacting the CSIP.”
A Thanet District Council spokesperson said: “We understand the public’s concern when large sea mammals, or other sea life, washes ashore on the district’s beaches.
“We have a duty to remove dead sea mammals if found above the shoreline on a main bay.
“The decision on where to dispose of them is then made by Kent County Council.
“In other instances, the carcass is left to nature.
“If the circumstances of the death appear suspicious, it is reported to the CSIP.
“This particular seal was photographed and reported to be in good condition.
“Any visible deterioration would most likely be due to age and natural decomposition. It was not necessary to report the seal to CSIP.
“Live and stranded aquatic mammals are reported to British Divers Marine Life Rescue, which coordinates any rescue attempts.”
Both grey and common seals on the east and south-east coast of England are protected all year from being killed, injured or taken under the Conservation of Seals Order 1999.
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