Earless seal

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Earless seals, also called true seals, are one of the three main groups of seals. They belong to the family Phocidae and are known for having no external ears. They live in the oceans around the world, mostly in cooler waters, though a few species reach warmer areas. One species, the Baikal seal, lives in freshwater.

Size and appearance vary a lot. The smallest earless seal is about 1.2 meters long and 45 kilograms, while the largest, the southern elephant seal, can reach about 5.8 meters and 4,000 kilograms.

Movement and land life are different from other seals. On land, earless seals are clumsy and must wriggle or crawl. In the water, they are strong swimmers, using their powerful hind flippers to push and their front flippers to steer. They cannot bend their hind flippers under their bodies, so they don’t walk the way sea lions do.

They are skilled divers and spend a lot of time underwater. Their bodies and lungs are adapted to dive deeply and for long periods, and their ears have special adaptations to handle pressure.

Earless seals have diverse feeding methods. Some use suction to draw prey, others grab and tear, some filter small prey from the water, and others pierce prey. They are opportunistic eaters and often use more than one feeding strategy. For example, some species may eat fish, squid, penguins, and krill.

Breeding and caring for young involve long periods of fasting by mothers. Mothers nurse their pups with very fatty milk, allowing the pups to grow quickly. After nursing, the mother may return to the sea to feed, while the pup relies on its fat stores for a while.

Communication varies by species. Many earless seals are quiet on land, but they may slap the water, grunt, or clap underwater to signal others.

Taxonomically, earless seals are divided into two main subfamilies: Phocinae (the northern seals) and Monachinae (the southern seals). There are many species within these groups, including the harbor seal, gray seal, Weddell seal, leopard seal, elephant seals, and monk seals.