Every new seal pup monitored in an estuary this year has died, mainly from a condition called mouth rot, a conservation research group has said.
For the last two years, the Tara Seal Research team has been monitoring common seals and their pups at Seal Sands and Greatham Creek in the Tees estuary. As part of its Tees Estuary Seal Study the team counted 21 pups at Seal Sands but found they had all died weeks later in the Tees Bay area.
Dr Sue Wilson, from the conservation team, said the pups dying before they reached two months old was “devastating”.
A government spokesperson said staff at Defra “continue to engage with scientists and wildlife experts” about the seals’ welfare.