Swile Net Tickle

This narrow passage is called Swile Net Tickle – “swile” meaning seal in Newfoundland English. The name of course suggests that this was a place where seals were captured, a practice described by one observer in 1770:

“There is a narrow tickle of twenty yards in width, between this island and the continent; across which a net is fixed, to stop the seals from passing through” - From the Dictionary of Newfoundland English (Story et al., 1982, p. 566).

Early settlement in Change Islands began in the latter half of the eighteenth century, fuelled by the English Labrador floater fishery and complemented by the inshore fishery. However, Change Islands was also an important centre for seal hunting, which was an important source of income for many families until very recently. The collapse of the market caused by the ban on seal product imports to the European Union is but one example of how coastal communities are vulnerable to changes in international markets.