Shark fishermen cause seal disturbance at The Children’s Pool
Videos show the seals leaving the beach due to human presence while shark fishing from and below the seawall.
Sierra Club Seal Society of San Diego is sounding the alarm after a pair of fishermen disturbed mother seals and their pups at The Children’s Pool Beach.
Videos taken about 7:40 am Feb 23 show two fishermen brandishing a shark about three feet long on the beach, which is currently closed through May 15 for seal pupping season.
Nate Collins watched the fishermen walk out on the seawall, noticing they had large lures, “the size of a man’s hand.”
“It all happened pretty fast,” he said, adding he then saw seals begin to scatter and someone climbing down the beach side of the seawall, dragging a large shark.
The fishermen tried to remove the large hook, took pictures with the shark and then threw it back into the water, though the shark washed back up moments later.
“It’s pretty clear [the shark] wasn’t recovered,” Collins said.
Police were called and arrived, issuing a warning to the fishermen, according to Seal Society Chair Robyn Davidoff.
The subjects were not cited, San Diego police Lt. Bryan Brecht said. “We don’t always cite for a violation of the law; we give warnings and education as well.”
The police documented the fishermen’s information on a Field Interview form and they were directed to leave the beach area, he said.
The police officers then left and the fishermen resumed fishing from the seawall.
Fishing from the seawall is legal, Davidoff said.
Seal Society’s primary objection is the fishermen on the closed beach, as their presence flushed the resting seals, sending the pinnipeds into the water out of fear.
With 27 newborn pups and their mothers currently – and more coming, beach time is critical for the seals, Davidoff said, as mothers need to conserve energy for nursing and resting. Flushed mother seals might also abandon their pups.
“Common sense is not the law,” she said.
Watch the video and join the discussion here.
Video footage provided by Sierra Club Seal Society of SD.
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