Both Grey Seals and Common Seals are Protected Species in Ireland under the Irish Wildlife Act, 1976 and The EU’s Marine Mammal Protection Act, 1972. The Grey Seal was in danger of extenction during the early 1900's due to hunting, but they have recovered in numbers since then - yay! They estimate there are around 13,000 Grey Seals in Irish waters at the moment. On the other hand, the Common Seals are currently a species of special concern in Ireland since their numbers are slowly declining. They estimate there are only around 2,500 Common Seals in Irish waters at the moment. I guess they're not so common after all! Actually, they are called 'common' seals because they are located across the world, so in that way they are common. Luckily, world-wide they have an estimated population of between 350,000 and 500,000. Phew! But that just goes to show you that there can be local problems even if, overall, an animal population is doing well. The Irish don't want to see their Common Seals go extinct or no longer able to live here because their environment has changed so much!
