People are filming themselves throwing rocks at seals to force them to jump off cliffs and they need to stop immediately

People are throwing rocks at seals to try and force them to jump off a cliff.

Yes, in another instalment in a seemingly endless saga of 'humans are garbage', footage has been shared of people throwing rocks at seals.

The people were at St Mary's Island Nature Reserve in Newcastle on Saturday 9 June as they filmed themselves abusing one of the seals in the reserve.

As they threw rocks, the seal began to panic and became increasingly distressed.

To avoid them, the seal made for the edge of the cliff and jumped into the water below.

You can watch the moment here:

The video shows the three holding a phone up, thought to be recording, as they hurl rocks towards the defenceless seal.

St. Mary's Seal Watch posted the video in hopes of raising awareness of the myriad problems wildlife face.

They also mentioned that this was not the first time rocks had been cast at the seals.

In a long post to Facebook, they wrote:

This malicious act was carried out on St. Mary's Island Nature Reserve and seen from the mainland on Saturday 9th June at around 9.00pm.

We have had other visitors saying they have witnessed the same thing over this season.

This footage is not to name and shame the individuals but to highlight some of the problems the wildlife faces on the reserve and the stark contrast between the recent Springwatch clip of the island in all its majestic glory.

The reality for most of the wildlife here which is subjected to repeated disturbance rarely finds the tranquillity shown in the beautiful Springwatch footage

They continued:

The behaviour in this clip is abhorrent, however the most prolific disturbance source to all the wildlife is those carrying out recreational activities on the wildlife sensitive areas of the island.

Without protection St. Mary’s Island Nature Reserve is no haven for the wildlife but a place where visitor pressure prevents any chance of the wildlife thriving.

And the post went on to explain what you can do to stop this behaviour:

If you see people ignoring Council signs requesting visitors avoid the wildlife sensitive areas report it to staff in the lighthouse.

If the lighthouse is not open email stmaryslighthouse@northtyneside.gov.uk

If you see any activity of intentional harassment call 101 and report it.

If in doubt as to what you should do please contact St. Mary’s Seal Watch for advice. 

St Mary's Seal Watch added that if the reserve is not treated with respect, then the wildlife will leave.

They also profusely advised visitors to give wildlife plenty of space and observe quietly from a distance.

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