Do Harp Seals Contribute to the Depletion of Cod Populations?
The scientific community has concluded that the cause of the depletion of fish stocks off Canada’s East Coast is human over-fishing. Blaming seals for disappearing fish is a convenient way for the fishing industry to divert attention from its irresponsible and environmentally destructive practices. Harp seals, who are the primary target of the hunt, eat many different species-—only 3 percent of a harp seal’s diet is commercially fished cod—and they also eat many cod predators.
