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Northern Fur Seal

beluga

Estimated population: 1.365 million
Vulnerable(IUCN Red List)

Ways to idenify this species: Male coloration is reddish brown to black,
juveniles silver to grey, lg. bare flippers

Biology

A migratory animal they spend the summer months on islands in the Bering Sea, including the Pribilof Islands, where 75% of population is found. Each fall, they travel farther north to colder icier waters.

Their large, bare flippers help regulate body temperature on land. Dense fur covers the rest of the body and consists of approximately 46,500 hairs per square centimeter.

Fur seal rookeries are centered upon a small group of breeding males (bulls) with harems of females. Adult males without harems of their own surround the core area, awaiting the opportunity to steal a harem or mate on the sly. Sub-adults and other “idle” males rest on haulouts outside the rookery.

Threats

Species has been subject to intense sealing, with many millions of seals killed following its discovery in the 1700s. Commercial hunting was discontinued in 1984. Population seems to have remained stable but is only half the estimated size of the 1950s.

Some populations are sensitive to the impacts

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