I need here names no anonymous!
We are the country of thousands lakes; there are also some huge big lakes but only in Saimaa lives the Ringed Seal. Tha last years have been very bad for the ringed seal because Saimaa-lake is far away south in my poit of view and there is no ice every year. Still they try nesting where possible and the nesting places are pacified but the ringed seals swim in summertime...also in winter...in another palces.
Humans once again are the only threat for the ringed seal, and the species has been protected for the past half-century. Still it has more recently been classified as threatened of extinction. The struggle of the Saimaa ringed seal was at the end of the 19th century considered to be an enemy of fishing and a bounty was paid for the skull of a ringed seal.
In the past decades the size of the Saimaa ringed seal population declined as no less than half of the born individuals die before reaching adult age. Some years ago one of two pups died because of the lethal fishing nets. Ringed seals die before reproductive age because of reckless fishing methods involving strong-threaded nets.
A solution for the prevention of these deaths involving fishing nets would be to replace these dangerous fishing gear with safer fish traps. These fish traps may also represent a danger to the pups if they are too loose.
Indeed, global warming causing milder winters than usual, result in too little snow and frost being available for the Saimaa ringed seal to securely build its nest. In this case, other threats will surface, such as the cold and predators.
Saimaa ringed seal needs peace during its nesting period from December to April, but the species is often disturbed by the increasing amount of summer cottages, the all-year-round use of these and intense construction around the Saimaa region.
Copyright Leiah Sariell
