Moment angler yob hurls a beer bottle at a SEAL to stop it getting tangled in his fishing line is caught on camera by Devon litter pickers
- A researcher for the Seal Project conservation charity captured the incident
- Team was picking litter after a reported increase in antisocial behaviour in area
- RSPCA has warned of rise in the number of seals being affected by fishing litter
This is the shocking moment an angler tries to stop a seal getting caught on his fishing line by throwing a glass beer bottle at it.
The incident took place earlier this week on a headland at Torquay, Devon, where members of the conservation charity Seal Project were in the area for litterpicking.
Duncan Kenny, 45, a researcher for the Seal Project, spotted the angler hurling a beer bottle at the seal, which then swam off.
This is the moment an angler lobbed his empty beer bottle at a grey seal while fishing at Hopes Nose in Torquay, Devon. The incident was snapped by litter-pickers from the Seal Project
The beer bottle reportedly hit the seal on the back prompting it to swim away from the shore
He said: 'We were about to start a beach clean, a litter clear of the area to help maintain healthy habitats in the area.On approach we were on the top of the quarry looking down on the anglers - there has been a lot of anti-social behaviour in that area for a number of years and we were down there basically cleaning their litter.
'We were taking photographs of where the litter was so we could identify the area we needed to go when we saw one of the anglers put down his fishing rod - with a grey seal in front of him in the water - finished his beer and threw the bottle at the seal, which hit its back.
'It was intentional, he was deliberately throwing it at the seal.
'The seal hung around for a bit then escaped and he carried on fishing.'
The incident took place near Hopes Nose, near Torquay, where it is legal to fish and is a popular spot for professional anglers.
Duncan Kenny, pictured (left) with other members of the Seal Project conservation charity, described the incident as unacceptable and said seals did not need stress from humans
Mr Kenny added: 'We went to approach the angler but by the time we went down to the quarry he was in he had already packed up and left so we didn't speak to him directly.
'We spoke to the people he was with, just gave advice - 'don't throw glass bottles at wildlife, it is unacceptable and general advice on how to fish safely.
The RSPCA says it receives more than 5,000 reports every year about animals who have been injured or trapped by discarded litter.
The animal protection charity has urged people to safely, responsibly and properly and fishing litter to ensure our wildlife and marine life are safe from these hazards.
So far this year, the RSPCA have taken three seals into their care due to injuries caused by fishing litter, with the latest being a seal found with netting round its neck in Norfolk.
The charity says the type of incident is rapidly increasing and that 2019 was the worst yet with 11 patients arriving at the centre due to these injuries, up on the eight from the previous year.
This is just some of the litter being collected by the Seal Project at Hopes Nose, in Torquay
Overall, the animal welfare charity has recorded a rise in incidents affecting animals involving plastic litter from 473 in 2015 to 579 in 2018, with a fourfold rise in seals affected by incidents - 28 recorded in 2018 compared to just 5 in 2015.
A huge rise in reports of animals injured by discarded fishing litter this summer has prompted the RSPCA to issue a stark warning to new and inexperienced anglers.
The warning comes as calls to the charity reporting wildlife injured by angling litter such as fishing line, weights and hooks, rose by 48 per cent between May and June this year.
The charity suspects that the easing of lockdown put in place by the pandemic, along with a spell of good weather, has seen a rise in people taking up outdoor activities such as fishing, causing an excess of discarded angling litter.
The RSPCA has received 393 calls about fishing litter across England & Wales since the beginning of the year, with 97 per cent of those calls made between May, June and July.
Adam Grogan, Head of Wildlife at the RSPCA, said: 'This jump in the number of calls about animals injured by fishing litter since lockdown eased is a real cause for concern.
Anglers at Hopes Nose, in Torquay, where litter-pickers spotted a man lob a bottle at a seal
'We're seeing a number of cases where wild animals like gulls, owls and swans are getting their wings and legs tangled up in fishing line, sharp hooks caught in their beaks, and suffering all sorts of awful injuries, sometimes with tragic consequences.
'Our inspectors and officers are working hard to rescue as many of these stricken animals as they can and where needed transport them to a vet or to our specialist wildlife centres. Thankfully, many can be saved but they may require a lot of care, treatment and rehabilitation.
'Others aren't so lucky and sometimes their injuries are just too severe for them to survive.
Dr Emily Smith, Angling Trust's Environment Manager, said: 'Most anglers are very responsible when disposing of their litter, but unfortunately it only takes one piece of snagged or discarded fishing line to endanger the life of an animal.
'We've joined forces with the RSPCA to ask all anglers to be extra cautious and make sure nothing is left behind by following our simple steps to protect the environment and wildlife from harm.'
Mr Kenny, who volunteers for the Seal Project, said: 'They are resilient, very tough animals, they are protected by UK law, they shouldn't need to face that additional stress from aggression from humans.
'They are wild species, they are important to all of us.'
The Seal Project said it was 'not an isolated case' and it had received 'numerous reports of this aggressive behaviour recently'.
In a Facebook post, it said volunteers had collected 12 bags of rubbish during Sunday's visit to Hope's Nose and observed 'multiple examples of antisocial behaviour'.
All seals are protected under the Conservation of Seals Act and people are advised to stay away from them.
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