Least ConcernBearded Seal
Erignathus barbatus
One of the 13 seals on WAnimals
Mammals · Carnivora · Phocidae
Phoca largha
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk.
The spotted seal, or largha seal, is the only seal of the North Pacific that depends on drifting sea ice to breed. It looks very like the harbour seal, with which it lives side by side in some areas, but is told apart by a life cycle tied to the seasonal pack ice. It feeds on fish, cephalopods and crustaceans and often dives below 100 metres. Its population is still large, but the retreat of the seasonal ice in the Bering Sea is a structural threat over the medium term.
Weight
65 kg – 115 kg
Size
1.5 m – 2.1 m
Life expectancy
35 years
Diet
Carnivore
Feeds mainly on other animals.
Activity
Irregular activity
Active at irregular times, by day or night depending on circumstances.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sources consulted: Wikipedia (es): Phoca largha
Best time: From March to April in the Sea of Okhotsk, the Bering Sea and the Yellow Sea, when it pups on drifting ice.
The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented — showing 10 of 12.
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Spotted Seal — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Based on what we already know about spotted seal.
