Pup production of Northwest Atlantic Harp Seals, Pagophilus groenlandicus, in 2022

Abstract

In March 2022 photographic aerial surveys were conducted in the northern and southern Gulf of St. Lawrence (Gulf) and off the southeast coast of Labrador/northeast coast of Newfoundland (the Front) to estimate the total pup production of Northwest Atlantic (NWA) harp seals. After extensive reconnaissance, four whelping patches were identified: southern Gulf, northern Gulf, northern Front, and southern Front. In the southern Gulf, two independent photographic surveys, each covering the entire whelping patch, were flown on March 5 and 9. Averaging the two survey estimates resulted in an estimated pup production of 63,392 (SE=28,556; CV=45%) for the southern Gulf. In the northern Gulf, photographic surveys of two aggregations were flown March 11 and 12, respectively, with a combined estimated pup production of 46,207 (SE=8,628, CV=19%). On the Front photographic surveys were flown for the northern Front on March 16 and the southern Front on March 25 with a combined estimated pup production of 504,009 (SE=62,818; CV=13%). Combining the estimates from the southern Gulf, northern Gulf and Front areas resulted in an estimate of total NWA harp seal pup production for 2022 of 614,100 (SE=69,500, CV=11%) (rounded to the nearest hundred). This estimate is lower than the 2017 survey for the same area (746,500, SE=89,800) and is the lowest NWA harp seal pup production estimate since 1994.