Seals are found where water is found, the water is not the water of a river of lake but the water of sea. Seals are marine animals that also live on earth. Seals are mainly found in those areas where the water freezes in cold weather. There are two groups of seals, one called Phocidae or earless seals and the other Otariidae or eared seals. Below are given some facts about seals.
1. Carnivores
Seals are carnivores’ i.e. they eat meat to live. They belong to the sub group of Pinnipedia which means fin foot or winged foot. The two groups of seals are Phocidae or common seals and Otraiidae or sea lion etc.
2. The evolution
There are many characteristics of seals that resemble with the animals of ground. For this reason, it is believed that seals may have evolved from some earth animal e.g. bear or otter.
3. Mammals
Seals though belong to water but are mammals. They spend much of their time in water but give birth to live young and nurse them on shore.
4. Species of seal
There are 32 known species of seals. The largest among them is the southern elephant seal which grows up to 13 feet long and they weigh up to 2 tons. The smallest of the 32 species is the Galapagos fur seal that grows up to 4 feet long and weigh up to 65 pound.
5. Their distribution
Seals are found throughout the world. The good thing is that they are not found in some specific locations, they can be seen from Polar Regions to tropical waters.
6. Characteristic
The seals of both warm and cool areas live in various manners, to survive on earth. The cold area seals are insulated with thick fur and blabber that restrict their body temperature from relieving. The hot area seals do the opposite they let their blood flow through their extremities so that their body temperature can be regulated.
7. Prey detection
Seals eat fish and squids as their primary meal like fish in the sea. They detect their prey though the vibration by their whiskers.
8. Diving
When they dive they dive longer and deeper than humans. Some species of seals can remain into water for about 2 hours. Â They do so because they have high concentration of hemoglobin in their blood and myoglobin in their muscles. They both carry high amount of oxygen.
9. Slowing the heart beat
Seals when dive, restrict their blood flow to only vital body parts and they slow their heart beats down up to 50-80 percent. The elephant seals are observed to slow their heart beat down from 112 beats per minute to 20-50 beats per minute.
10. Killers of seals
Seals themselves are killers but they get killed too. The killers of seals are sharks, orcas or killer whales and polar bears.