Photo by Bryan Archbold
Photo: Warning signs have been posted along portions of Carpinteria beaches in response to a shark attack on two harbor seals last week.

Two harbor seals were killed by at least one Great White Shark on March 9, according to City of Carpinteria officials. The seals were killed in the Harbor Seal Sanctuary, an offshore location near the Casitas Pier, where seals give birth to their pups.

The seals were killed at separate times by the same shark, it is believed. According to Seal Watch volunteers, who monitor the rookery’s activities from the above bluff, the first attack was at approximately 10:55 a.m. The second attack occurred at 11:20 a.m. It is the first shark attack at the sanctuary witnessed by volunteers.

“A bunch of birds took off, making a noise. I turned and saw blood in the water and shark fin it,” said witness Vic Hypes, who moved to Carpinteria from Lake Tahoe six weeks ago. “I yelled ‘shark! shark!’”

Hypes estimated the shark to be 30 to 40 yards out, near the buoy. It was swimming around in a big pool of blood, which dissipated, and then another pool of blood appeared.

He rode his bike to City Hall and reported the incident to the sheriff’s department. By the time he returned to the seal watch observation point, the second attack had occurred.

Retired Department of Fish and Game biologist Bob Lea identified the predator as a 15-foot Great White shark. A zoologist from the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History confirmed it. The identity was made through the bite marks on remains of one of the seals, which was recovered from the beach by city animal control officers.

In response to fears that the “success” of the Seal Watch is the reason for the shark attacks, and that more attacks are sure to follow, David Allen, a spokesperson for the all-volunteer Seal Watch reported that the local harbor seal population has remained approximately the same since the organization began 18 years ago.

He noted that although the number of pups born onshore has increased, the overall high counts of seals have not. At the Carpinteria rookery, the high count of harbor seals was 365 in 1994 on Oct. 1. Typically, over 200 adult seals have been observed since the 1980s.

Last Friday, warning signs were posted along portions of Carpinteria beaches advising of the possible presence of sharks in the water. The beach area between the Bluffs Park and Carpinteria State Park is closed annually from December through May for seal pup birthing season.

Seal Watch exists to protect a valuable natural and human resource—protecting the seals for their value both as a part of the natural world and for their value to people as a source of enjoyment and education. Human activities—not natural processes including predation—are the primary threat to the survival of the Carpinteria harbor seal rookery and haul out, Allen said.