Exciting encounters with sea mammals in Sussex in 2022 include a humpback whale, walrus, dolphins, porpoises and seals

It had been thought the young female harbour seal had moved on, having been delighting people in Shoreham and along the river to Upper Beeding ever since it was first spotted in the River Adur in May 2020.

Zoologist Stephen Savage, Sussex county recorder for sea mammals and the Sussex Seal Project, has recorded an increase in seals over the past few years and due to an increase in the public reporting sightings, there have been around 1,000 recorded for Sussex for 2022.

Stephen said most of these are harbour seals like Riviere but he has also recorded more grey seals locally, including a large adult grey seal cruising close to shore at Brighton, Shoreham and Worthing.Bottlenose dolphins and porpoises have also continued to be reported from time to time, further offshore.

Stephen said: "We have had an exciting end to the year with the confirmation of a humpback whale near Brighton and a walrus that passed Sussex on its way west and hopefully back to the Arctic. While this is very exciting, it is also concerning when we see such individuals far from their usual waters."

He has been closely monitoring the movements of individual seals in the area using photographic identification profiles he has created.

Stephen said: "It's been an exciting year for sea mammals this year and exciting stuff going on as usual with Riviere. With the worrying increase in threats to our oceans and marine life, its nice to see that sea mammals are still thriving in Sussex seas.

"A lack of sightings of Riviere in the Adur earier this year suggested she had moved on but photographs in October and December matched her photo ID profile, confirming she was still living in the River Adur. Riviere is not the only seal seen locally, so it has been important that we have been able to prove that indeed this seal is Riviere."

Having been studying local sea mammals since 1998, Stephen can confirm seals do occasionally become resident in our rivers. They usually haul out in the upper tidal regions and swim down river with the outgoing tide to feed in the estuary and sea, using the tidal flow to save energy.

Stephen said: "The downside of hauling out on the Adur riverbank is that this usually occurs close to footpaths and public rights of way. This means people often unintentionally disturb resting seals, which can be measured by the degree of changes in a seals behaviour. When disturbed, seals exhibit a higher level of vigilance, which unfortunately is mistaken for the seal showing off."

Occasionally, seals are reported with red fur, mistaken for an injury, but Stephen explained this was due to seals spending a long time on estuary mud and absorbing the iron, which is quite harmless.

Sea mammal sightings are a valuable source of data and Stephen is keen to hear from anyone who has spotted a seal or other sea mammal in Sussex. He would like to receive information including where the seal was spotted, the day and time, if the seal was swimming or hauled out and any other information.

Photographs are also very useful as they can be used to determine the species (required for the science database) and, along with video clips, can also give a valuable context to the sighting, such as location or behaviours. Close-up photographs are used to create photo ID profiles to monitor the movements of individuals seals like Riviere. To report sea mammal sightings, email [email protected]