Seal

by Danisha, Bank Street School for Children

Environment
Life Cycle
Food
Appearance

Environment

Some seals live in the Arctic. Harp Seals migrate to Greenland, Canada, and some oceans. The Harp Seal's name is Phoca Groenland which means "The ice over from Greenland."

Seals live in groups for company and protections. Seals chew through the ice to get out of the water. They come out of the water every fifteen minutes to breath. Pups migrate to the north and east by themselves.

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Life Cycles, Mating and Reproduction

Seals are warm blooded animals that are related to land animals. Harp Seals are mammals, not fish.

Harp Seals begin to mate when they are about 5 years old and they have about one pup a year. A male Harp Seal will mate with several females.

Harp Seals do a lot of stuff on the ice like give birth. February and the beginning of March is when pups are born. Young Harp Seals can grow fast by drinking it's mothers milk. They nurse from their mothers for up to seven weeks.

Pups weigh one hundred pounds at three weeks and about 600 pounds when they are grown up. Baby Harp Seals have yellow fur at birth but as they get older their fur turns white to brown. Baby Harp Seals stay with their mom for a short time.

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Food, Eating and Hunting Habits

Harp Seals eat crab, eel, shrimp, salmon, herring, capelin, octopus, flounder, cod, anchovy, squid and smelt. Pups cry when they are hungry. When a pup is not eating it's teeth stop growing.

Polar bears and humans are a threat to the Harp Seal. Polar bears like to eat Harp Seals and the Harp Seal's blubber is useful for cooking meat, oil, clothes, and tents. Their guts are used for sewing.

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Appearance and Behavior

The Harp Seals' fur coat keeps them warm in the cold water and winters. A baby seal can stay warm by shivering. A baby Harp Seal's fur is called "Lango." Male Harp Seals have more spots on their body than the female seal. Adult Harp Seals have several inches of blubber on their body. All different kinds of seals are killed for their blubber, fur and skin.

Harp Seals don't walk on their fins like the other group of seals, which are the eared seals. Harp Seals can have thirty teeth. They are six feet long when adult.

Most seals like to swim on their backs. They can stay under water for thirty minutes. They close their nostrils before they go in the water so no water can get in. The Harp Seal's whiskers can sense an animal form far away. Their eyes get bigger under water so they can see better.

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