Conservationists have celebrated the first newborn pup of the season at Ythan Estuary’s seal colony but warned the public to give the tiny animal space to settle into its new surroundings.
The baby grey seal was first spotted at the end of last week playing with its mother among around 1,000 other seals at the colony at the mouth of the River Ythan, close to Newburgh.
And hundreds more pups are expected to be born throughout the season, until the end of January.
The beach has become one of the best places in the country to watch the charismatic creatures, where the seals make up 26% of Scotland’s east coast population.
This part of the estuary was designated by Marine Scotland as an official seal haul-out site, making it a punishable offence to disturb the seals while they are lounging around on land.
The estuary is part of Forvie National Nature Reserve, which is managed by Scottish Natural Heritage.
Annabel Drysdale, the manager of the reserve, said: “We all love to watch wildlife, but we also need to protect it.
“So we would ask people to go to the other beach at Newburgh on the south side of the estuary, where you can get a better view of the seals without accidentally disturbing them.
“It’s exciting news that the seals are doing so well at the Forvie National Nature Reserve, but we all need to make sure these wonderful animals are protected.
“There’s a big increase in visitor numbers, particularly over the last year, so this extra protection for the seals is welcome and important.”
