Two seal pups at South Walney — and a colony that keeps coming back

The seal counters at South Walney Nature Reserve near Barrow have had their first celebration of the season: two grey seal pups, spotted during a routine count at Cumbria's only breeding grey seal colony. It is the twelfth year running that pups have been recorded here — last year brought a record 14 — and the colony's numbers keep climbing, from 360 seals in 2018 to a record 563 in December 2024. Grey seals only began breeding at South Walney in 2015. Marine conservation officer Beth Churn credits the quiet: the team works hard to keep the beach safe and undisturbed, so the seals feel able to return. Visitors can watch from three hides — with binoculars, from at least 100 metres (328 feet) away — and a new hide with a telescope is on its way. 'This is always an exciting time of year for us,' Churn said. 'We hope there'll be many more to come.'

SDG 15 · Life on land — Mechanism: institutional program