NOAA Fisheries Declares Unusual Mortality Event Due to Elevated Strandings of Ice Seals in the Arctic

By on    Featured, NOAA Fisheries and Alaska Fisheries Science Center  

NOAA Fisheries Declares Unusual Mortality Event Due to Elevated Strandings of Ice Seals in the Arctic

A dead seal found on a beach near Kotzebue, Alaska. Credit: NPS/Raime Fronstin NOAA is declaring an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) for bearded, ringed, and spotted seals in the Bering and Chukchi seas. From June 1, 2018 to present there have been reports of 282 dead seals, with 119 stranded seals in 2018 and 163 in 2019. The increase […]

NOAA Fisheries Responding to Multiple Dead Ice Seals in Bering Sea Region

By on    Featured, NOAA Fisheries and Alaska Fisheries Science Center, State  

NOAA Fisheries Responding to Multiple Dead Ice Seals in Bering Sea Region

  Photo: A hunter from Kotlik counted 18 dead seals along 11 miles of shore, north of Kotlik. Credit: Harold Okitkun/May 7, 2019. NOAA Fisheries is responding to several reports of unusually large numbers of dead ice seals along the coast of the Bering and Chukchi seas, in Alaska. At least 60 dead seals have […]