Two seals shot dead in NZ TWO protected seals have been shot in the head at a New Zealand colony, the NZ Department of Conservation says. The two seals, a female and a pup thought to be about 11 months old, were discovered just below the Ohau Point lookout, north of Kaikoura on Saturday. They were about 50 metres apart and it is not known if the female was the pup's mother. DOC south Marlborough area manager David Hayes said the two dead seals appear to have been shot at close range between late on Friday afternoon and around midday on Saturday. It was "deeply disappointing" someone would deliberately and callously shoot two fur seals in the head, he said. Ohau Point is a popular stop-off between Picton and Kaikoura to view seals. The nearby Ohau Stream waterfall pool is a popular attraction with around 12,000 visits a month, Mr Hayes said. In late 2010, 25 seals, including pups, were found beaten to death at the seal colony. Jemaal Peter Roy Large, 37, of the Wairau Valley, near Blenheim, will stand trial in October on charges alleging he clubbed the seals to death with a galvanised steel pipe. Another man was charged with Large and has been dealt with by the courts. Under the Marine Mammals Protection Act the maximum penalty for killing a fur seal is a $NZ250,000 ($A217,637) fine or six months in jail.