Some Want Seals Killed in Cape Cod to Chase Away the Sharks

Would culling the seal population off the coast of Cape Cod rid us of the Great White Sharks that are coming into our area in increasing numbers?

According to Yahoo news, this is a hotly debated topic in beach communities this year.

There is no denying that the surf shop businesses have suffered. Now, the numbers are not yet in on whether or not tourism took a substantial hit, but there is no doubt this year has been the Summer of the Shark with beach closings and sightings like never before.

Reporting from Yahoo News chimed in on the debate as just last year a 26-year-old man was killed in a shark attack off the coast of Massachusetts.

Keep in mind this is the first fatal shark attack since 1936 in our area, the article states.

Technology is making us aware of the sharks in the water.  Drone videos, the Atlantic White Conservancy tracking many of the Great Whites, and more people have cell phones to video encounters; we are just more aware, but they have always been out there.

But would culling the seal herd really help?  Many say “no.”

It would require reversing a federal law protecting marine mammals, and when Republican lawmakers attempted to do so in 2017, they failed, according to Yahoo News.

Killing tens of thousands of seals would not prevent the seals from repopulating.  In fact, the number of seals has exceeded expectation since they were put on the protected species list, the news site reports.

Some have even floated the idea of putting the seals on “mammalian birth control” and believe it or not there is such a thing, according to Yahoo News, but would it really keep sharks away?

Whatever side of the issue you are on, it appears there are no easy answers.