The deaths of seals off Rügen will be considered by the courts on 13 November 2026. In Bergen auf Rügen the trial of two fishermen is due to begin. They are accused by the Stralsund Public Prosecutor’s Office of violating the Animal Welfare Act. The men are alleged to have knowingly accepted the risk of at least five grey seals dying in a fishing trap. The case will be heard at the Stralsund District Court’s branch office.
The proceedings stem from an unusually high number of seal carcasses found in autumn 2024. According to the state water police, a total of 44 dead seals had been reported on Rügen’s east coast by 30 October 2024. Not all these deaths are part of the case against the two fishermen. They are presumed innocent.
According to the prosecution, at least 19 grey seals had swum into a fishing trap and died there by 12 October 2024. The fishermen are alleged to have noticed this during an inspection. However, they are said to have taken no appropriate measures to prevent further deaths. The allegation is that five more animals died in the trap by 14 October 2024.
The men had previously been issued penalty orders imposing fines. Both lodged objections, which is why the case is now going to a public trial. According to Norddeutscher Rundfunk, the fishermen did not comment on the allegations before the trial. Their lawyer also declined to comment to the broadcaster in advance. A possible continuation of the trial has been pencilled in for 18 November 2026.
The large number of dead animals initially left authorities and experts asking what had caused the seals’ deaths. In October 2024, the water police launched an investigation on suspicion of a breach of the Animal Welfare Act. At the end of that month, it said the cause of the deaths had not yet been established. The German Oceanographic Museum examined recovered animals. According to the museum director, in comments reported by NDR, findings in most cases pointed to suffocation.
The case also touches on a longstanding conflict between fishing and nature conservation. Grey seals are protected, but they can also cause problems for fishermen trying to catch fish. Following the seal deaths, the requirement to fit seal-exclusion devices to fishing traps was extended to the entire coastline of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Previously, a similar rule applied only to the Greifswald Bodden.
The environmental organisation BUND does not consider the current rules sufficient, according to NDR, and is calling for smaller openings to protect young seals as well. The state ministry responsible told the broadcaster that it was not aware of any grey seal deaths connected with such fishing traps since the rules were extended. The court will have to determine whether the accused fishermen are criminally responsible for any of the deaths.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).