Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 528: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the estimated number and population of common seal at estuary entries; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37455/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department, and University College Cork, carried out a joint project on the national population of common, or harbour, seals in 2003. This provides the most recent and most reliable data on the common seal population and is published on one of my Department's websites at www.npws.ie.

This work was carried out in mid summer 2003 and reflects the distribution of common or harbour seals, when the largest number of animals are ashore and thus can be most reliably counted.

This study used new technology and its findings are not directly comparable with previous data. However the indications are that while the distribution of common seal may change, there has been little change in the national population in recent years.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 529: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the assessments of grey seal population in the past 10 years migrating from Scotland to the breeding grounds at Iniskea Islands; his views on whether there has been an increase in numbers in recent years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37512/06]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The National Parks and Wildlife Service of my Department and University College Cork are concluding work on an assessment of the Irish population of grey seals. This species can be accurately censused only when they come ashore to breed in autumn and early winter. As breeding takes place on exposed and remote islands and cliff sites, this is difficult work, based mainly on aerial photography.

While we know from satellite tagging that some grey seals move between Scotland and Ireland, there is no data on numbers, nor on whether they travel to Ireland to breed, to moult or for other reasons.

The report of this work will be published shortly on one of my Department's websites www.npws.ie.