THE cute and cuddly New Zealand fur seal is rapidly emerging as one of Australia's worst environmental pests, both on land and sea.
An explosion of the NZ fur seal population in South Australian waters has led to accusations that it is devastating marine species including fish, the little penguin, giant cuttlefish, sea lions, squid and pipis.
The NZ fur seal population has increased to more than 85,000 in SA, an estimated 350 per cent increase in the past 25 years and is rising rapidly each year.
Fishermen and community groups say the state's marine eco-system is suffering because the average NZ fur seal eats about 4.5kg of seafood a day, which means a total loss of 382.5 tonnes of seafood a day or 140,000 tonnes a year from SA waters.
Apart from damage to the seafood industry, the problem is hurting the state's economy by cutting tourism and reducing jobs.
The rapid rise in the NZ fur seal population has been described as akin to a canary in the coal mine warning for the entire marine eco-system.
The impacts of the NZ fur seal are many and varied and not always clearly understood. Some believe the little penguin species has been brought to such a low point that the species is nearing extinction in South Australian waters.
Others believe the NZ fur seals could end up almost eliminating entire fish species, including the King George whiting and garfish.
The NZ fur seal has been accused of harming the sea lion community and possibly causing the death of dolphins by out-competing them for food in state waters this year.
The fur seal colony on Kangaroo Island is having such an impact that fishing of the gummy shark has been almost ruled out in an area where it has been sustainable for decades.
The aquaculture industry is also facing serious issues, including the SA southern bluefin tuna industry, which has developed various tactics to stop the seals.
The issue has led to a major philosophical battle between country communities and the fishing sector, which is calling for action, and the do-nothing approach of the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources.
The concern has prompted a major SA investigation by key researchers for the SA Research and Development Institute to try and fill serious gaps in knowledge and assess the impacts of the NZ fur seal on the seafood industry.
A background report says the NZ fur seal population size and prey consumption are increasing rapidly and may continue to do so for many decades in SA.
"There is growing concern within the seafood industry about how increasing populations of fur seals will impact the future sustainability and production of key fisheries, and about the growing costs involved in managing and mitigating seal interactions with aquaculture," it says.
"Furthermore, the rapid growth of fur seal populations in SA has been implicated in declines of little penguin colonies that sustain eco-tourism operations at Victor Harbor, Penneshaw and Kingscote. They are also considered by some to be a contributing factor in the decline of the giant cuttlefish population off Point Lowly in northern Spencer Gulf.
"It has also been suggested that they compete for prey resources with Australian sea lions, thereby impacting the recovery of their populations."
Jeff Howard has farmed at Cape Hart on southern Kangaroo Island for 40 years. He has watched the seal population build from nothing to 2500 seals across a 400m stretch of beach during the peak breeding season.
"It's seal heaven, everything is in the seals' favour," he says. "We're just being overrun by them and when you've got that many they have to be doing damage to the environment."
Around the state the evidence is everywhere of the devastation caused by the fur seals.
Wild Catch Fisheries SA chairman Jonas Woolford says the rapidly rising NZ fur seal population is displacing sea lions, especially on islands and reefs.
"The last time we worked around Pearson Island earlier this year we couldn't see any evidence of little penguins and it has always had a large penguin population," he says.
Ceduna Boat Charter and Ceduna Tours operator Perry Will says the fur seal population in the area has exploded in the past few years, after not previously seeing them in the region in more than 30 years of operating charter boats.
"On Freeling Island, off St Francis Island, there used to be a lot of sea lions, but they've been replaced by NZ fur seals," he says.
Ferguson Australia chief executive Andrew Ferguson says New Zealand fur seals are
in plague proportions in many areas and plentiful in no-take fishing zones where they are eating hundreds of tonnes of fish a day.
Mr Ferguson says the fishing sector is worried the department lacks the knowledge to handle the problem and has got it wrong.
SA Shark Industry spokesman Kyri Toumazos says fishermen have been catching gummy sharks around Kangaroo Island for decades but recently had to move to other areas of the state because the explosion in fur seal numbers has severely reduced fish stocks.
"The only winner here is the great white shark, which has endless amounts of feed (the seals) and sooner or later we should address this issue," he says.
"They have permits to cull seals in Tasmania and while I'm not saying culling is the way to go, I am saying we have to find a way to keep the seal population under control.
"If we don't deal with this issue it will be catastrophic for the people in the regions and the eco-system."
Australian southern Bluefin Tuna Industry Association chief executive Brian Jeffriess says uncertainty about the fur seal population's growth is leading to a lack of planning and investment in further mitigation.
"This is a total ecosystem issue which the community will need to consider," he says. "The impact on aquaculture is only one part of the total picture.
"Attacks by seals are a major problem for tuna ranching. They are the largest cause of tuna deaths in the pontoons and frighten the other tuna so they do not eat for days."
To address the problem, the aquaculture industry is supporting the SARDI project to ensure a totally in dependent and expert assessment of the situation.
Family First Member Robert Broken
shire, a member of State Parliament's Natural Resources Committee, helped produce the "Away with the Fairies" report about little penguins in 2011.
Mr Brokenshire says he is concerned about the department's views that there is nothing to worry about when anecdotal evidence suggests there is a major problem.
The Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources says a statement, in a prepared statement, a range of research proposals have been developed to better understand interactions between NZ fur seals and the marine environment.
The research proposals seek to improve knowledge of NZ fur seal distribution, diets and foraging behaviours across the state, including Kangaroo Island.
"The research will help to inform future decisions about the management of potential impacts on the natural environment created by recovering fur seal populations," it says.
And despite the gaps in knowledge and the extensive research under way, the department says it does not support culling, sterilising or relocating New Zealand fur seals in SA.
"Attempts interstate and overseas to manage seal populations in these ways have proven resource hungry and largely ineffectual, and any benefit received from relocating a small number of seals would likely be lost due to the influx of new seals," the statement says.
The department says it is also not considering the use of seal deterrent devices, including the firing of bean bags, to move fur seals away from penguin colonies because their use interstate and overseas achieves very short-term results and rapidly lose effectiveness.