EIRPHOT: Grey Seal Photo-ID Database for Celtic and Irish Seas (1992-2016)

Over 17,000 photographic images of more than 9,000 grey seals, primarily females, collected from haul-out sites around the Celtic and Irish Seas. The images were gathered by the Countryside Council for Wales, Natural Resources Wales, and collaborating volunteers and organizations between 1992 and 2016. This photo-identification catalogue enables the recognition of individual seals based on their unique pelage markings.

Use Cases

• Analyzing individual seal site fidelity and associations based on repeated photographic encounters.
• Modeling seal movements and population connectivity across the Celtic and Irish Seas.
• Estimating longevity and survival rates using capture-mark-recapture methodologies.
• Training computer vision models for automated wildlife identification from pelage patterns.

Strengths

• Contains over 17,000 images, providing a substantial visual record.
• Covers a long temporal span of 24 years (1992-2016).
• Focuses on a specific, identifiable population of more than 9,000 individual seals.
• Data collection involved multiple sources, including government agencies and public contributors.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Data may reflect geographic and temporal bias inherent to the specific monitoring sites and periods.

Provenance

Source

Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) and Natural Resources Wales (NRW), with contributions from volunteers and partner organizations.

Collection Method

Photographic monitoring at seal haul-out sites, compiled into a photo-identification database for capture-mark-recapture analysis.

Time Range

1992 to 2016

Freshness

Last updated is unknown; data collection period ended in 2016.

Geography

Seal haul-out sites around the Celtic and Irish Seas.