Cape Fur Seals and the Rabies Risk

Rabies in seals has historically been rare, but recent reports since May 2024 have highlighted several cases of Cape fur seals testing positive for rabies along South Africa’s Western Cape and Northern Cape coastlines. While no other marine mammal species has been affected, these incidents have raised concerns about potential risks. Seals are known to travel long distances along the coast and often come into contact with humans.

Dr Greg Hofmeyr, a leading expert on Cape fur seals and co-ordinator of the stranding response programme for marine mammals in the southern and eastern Cape, has been working extensively along the coast and in Plettenberg Bay on cases of rabid seals and brings the latest research and findings to the symposium.

Each session consists of 20-minute presentations, followed by a joint Q&A session of 15 minutes.

ABOUT DR GREG HOFMEYR

After completing a BSc Hons in Zoology at the University of the Witwatersrand, Greg Hofmeyr spent a year on Marion Island as a field assistant on the University of Pretoria’s Marine Mammal Programme. This was followed by a second year on Marion, contract work on seals in Namibia, an MSc on elephant seals, five summer trips to Bouvet Island under the auspices of the Norwegian Polar Institute, and then a third year on Marion Island. Greg is now curator of the Marine Mammal collection at the Port Elizabeth Museum in Gqeberha. During his time there, he completed his PhD (with the Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria) on the behavioural ecology of elephant seals. He coordinates the stranding response programme for marine mammals in the southern and eastern Cape. His Interests include seal behavioural ecology, demography and conservation, and marine mammal taxonomy and morphology.