Donna Nook Nature Reserve sees record seal births

Grey seals are born white but after they have been abandoned at two or three weeks they shed their fur

A record number of seals have been born at a nature reserve.

Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, which manages the Donna Nook reserve, said 1,926 pups were born and it expected another 30 before the end of the season.

In 2011 and 2013, dozens of youngsters died when tidal surges hit the coast but the colony has otherwise enjoyed growth every year.

The reserve now attracts about 70,000 visitors annually.

The trust said the first pup was born on 24 October, beating the first arrival of 2015 by one day.

In 2015, some 1,889 seals were born at the nature reserve, continuing the colony's growth since the 1970s.

It said the year on year increase was down to many of the seals coming back to the same place they were born when they are ready to give birth.

More on this and other local stories from across Lincolnshire

Mothers with pups can be very protective and big bulls can be aggressive. A mother seal may abandon her pup if it smells of humans or dogs

Seals are large predators and very powerful. They can move surprisingly quickly and, having teeth similar to a dog, can inflict a nasty bite - including the pups

The seals spend most of the year at sea or on distant sandbanks but in November and December they come ashore to give birth.

After suckling their pups for two to three weeks, the seals abandon the young, mate again ready for the following year and then head out to sea again.

Eventually, starvation drives the young seals into the water in the hunt for food.

The seals spend most of the year at sea or on distant sandbanks but in November and December they come ashore to give birth

Donna Nook Nature Reserve extends for 10km (6.21 miles) along the Lincolnshire coast