Grey Seal Pup Capture-Mark-Recapture Data from Wales, 1954-1972

245 grey seal pups were marked with identification tags over an 18-year period from 1954 to 1972 in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The data was obtained from paper files held by Natural Resources Wales and originally supplied by the West Wales Field Society. It includes information on location, number of animals marked each year, sex, and age estimations.

Use Cases

• Modeling population survival and growth rates based on the 18-year time series of mark-recapture events.
• Analyzing spatial distribution and site fidelity of seal pups based on the location data.
• Studying sex ratios and age structure within the pup cohort over time.
• Validating or comparing historical population estimates for grey seals in Welsh waters.

Strengths

• 18-year longitudinal study provides a substantial time series for demographic analysis.
• 245 individually marked animals offer a solid sample size for population studies.
• Includes key biological variables such as sex and age estimations.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Data originates from historical paper records, which may introduce transcription or legibility issues.

Provenance

Source

Natural Resources Wales (NRW), originally supplied by the West Wales Field Society.

Collection Method

Capture-mark-recapture (CMR) methodology from field studies.

Time Range

1954-1972

Freshness

Historical data collection ended in 1972; last update for the digital record is unknown.

Geography

Pembrokeshire, Wales