04 NOVEMBER 2025: New publication investigates the effect of shipping noise on harbour seal habitat selection
The latest article in NAMMCO Scientific Publications Vol. 14, by Skye Wynn-Simmonds and colleagues, is titled “Assessing shipping noise as a potential driver of harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) habitat selection”.
In it, the authors analysed data gathered in a large bay in the English Channel, the Baie des Veys. Diving information was collected from 25 tagged harbour seals, while ship noise levels were calculated using data from the Automatic Identification System used by larger vessels. Using these noise levels and other environmental variables in statistical models, the authors determined that shipping noise had a very low influence on where seals choose to hunt—the animals generally preferred areas close to their haulout sites regardless of the level of ship traffic.