Seal Repellent.

[withoutapaddle]

Long time lurker, first time poster. I really enjoy and appreciate all the info, perpectives and Fishing BS that is shared here.

First lobster hooping season for me this year. So far I've bagged bugs 7 out of 11 trips and have been having a blast doing it. Its been a fun challenge to research, devise and refine tactics and gear.

Last night my buddy and I were harassed by seals at all three locations we tried and right now I can't think of what to do differently to avoid a similar scenario the next time a seal decides he's interested in our bait.

We tried everything we knew to do (ignore them and continue, a guide suggested slapping a paddle on the water to annoy them, sometimes just hanging out near our floats worked), but we experienced the most aggressive behavior yet (surfacing inches from our legs, nudging the yaks from the bottom and nosing the hoops on the deck of my yak), and finally called it an early night after watching a seal dive for our first hoop at our third spot.

It was still an awesome night, but if anyone has any tips for dealing with the seals, I'd love to hear them.

Thanks,

jp

[TJones]

My first thought was 22 cal.

Do you have seal proof bait cages?

[bus kid]

Paint ball gun.

[ctfphoto]

Originally Posted by madncrzydm

Do you have seal proof bait cages?

Seals can't get food, seals leave.

What I really want to know is, will the seals take lobsters from the hoops?

[Necron 99]

I was wondering if you guys had a good night. I didn't make it out Friday morning. I heard a paintball gun might work or it might piss them off. There are a few discussions of anti seal tactics on this site.

[sasha]

Slingshoot with marbles or round rocks. Or you can get some cement and cast your own projectiles weight and size that you like. Easy to use won't get you in trouble and fun to shoot.

[Fiskadoro]

Originally Posted by ctfphoto

Seals can't get food, seals leave. What I really want to know is, will the seals take lobsters from the hoops?

Yes on both counts.

First off get or make metal bait cages that they can't get your bait out of, but your still going to have the problem of them trying to eat bugs especially the shorts you release.

If you just take shorts out of the net and toss them the seals will grab them on the way down, and keep following you for more free meals. I leave shorts in the net when seals are around then when I drop the net I let the rope slide through my hand with a little pressure on it. If I feel a thump on the way down that means the seals are directly raiding the net on the way down.

In that case I take any shorts I get, put them in a five gallon bucket (I carry one for this purpose) paddle well away from my nets, and then sit for a few minutes watching for seals. They may follow but they get bored quickly if your not pulling nets or tossing bugs in the water, and leave after a while. Dump the shorts away from the nets when the seals aren't around and they will stop following you when you're pulling your nets.

Up here we have the problem of seals that have been essentially tamed by the Marine Mammal Rescue center in San Pedro. Ones that get too friendly they dump in SMB to keep them from repeatedly coming back to the center. I've had pups climb into the boat then hang out as if they expected to be fed and petted. Seals literally so tame you could safely touch them, a screwed up, and completely unnatural situation.

When these pups come up to may yak (they are tagged), I first try smacking the water with the paddle if that doesn't work I wait to their close and smack the side of my yak hard with my fist or the paddle.

They don't like loud noises and the booming sound of smacking the yak will make them afraid of the kayak, and get them to keep their distance.

Jim