THE DIET OF GRAY SEALS FROM THE SOUTH-WESTERN NORTH-SEA ASSESSED FROM ANALYSES OF HARD PARTS FOUND IN FECES

Halichoerus grypus faeces were collected from Donna Nook, Lincolnshire; otoliths were identified and measured to estimate the size of the fish ingested. For the whole year, sandeels Ammodytidae, cod Gadus morhua and Dover sole Solea solea accounted for 56.2% of the diet by weight. Other flatfish (dab Limanda limanda, flounder Platichthys flesus and plaice Pleuronectes platessa) contributed a further 21.6% by weight. Cod, sandeels and other roundfish dominated the diet at the beginning of the year. Flatfish took over in the spring to be succeeded by sandeels during the summer. Cod returned to the diet in October and the year ended with the diet divided between flatfish and roundfish, excluding sandeels. -from Authors