Harp Seal

Taxonomy

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Chordata

Class - Mammalia

Order - Carnivora

Clade - Pinnipedia

Family - Phocidae

Genus - Pagophilus

Species - P. groenlandicus

Evolution

Subspecies

The Harp Seal 2 subspecies
Pagophilus groenlandicus groenlandicus Which lives from eastern canada to norway
Pagophilus groenlandicus oceanicus Which lives from the White Sea to the Barents Sea

Ancestors

the oldest known seal fossil is about 25 million years old. This specific species is known to be about 2 million years old.

The closest living relative to the Harp Seal would be Grey Seals and Ribbon Seals.

Description

Harp seals have silvery-grey fur and black eyes. There is also a black spot on their head and on their backs, which sometimes resembles a Harp. They have relatively long tapered snouts, large eyes, and whiskers. They have short front flippers which they use to move around on the ground.

Adults are 1.7m - 2m in length and 255-310 lbs. Males tend to be slightly larger and heavier, and have slightly more prominent dark spots.

Harp Seals have an average lifespan of about 30 yrs

Pups are born with a white coat instead, which they will slowly lose as their silvery one grows in.

A Harp Seal pup whose silver coat has grown

Habitat

Distribution - Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia. Arctic and Atlantic Sea.

Harp Seals are not considered invasive in any location they currently reside in.

Rain - It rarely rains over the Arctic and the Atlantic. Snowfall is common

Plants - Seaweed, Seagrass, Microscopic algae

Animals - Polar bear, Beluga whale, Greenland shark, Seabird, Various other seal species

Temperature - Surface temp of water is constant near ~28.8 °F. Air temp varies much more but tends to be colder than water temps, leading wildlife to dive into the water for warmth.

Terrain - Seals spend time diving near the surface, and come up to lay on the sea ice occasionally

Diet

Harp seals have a hugely varied diet, they will eat basically any fish able to fit into its mouth. This includes more than 130 different species of fish.

Their most common prey is Capelin, Arctic cod, Polar cod. Smaller fish will be eaten whole underwater, while larger catches may be brought to the surface for consumption

Harp seals spend most of their time diving, with dives lasting 16 minutes at a time. They will eat any food they see while they dive and essentially are hunting all the time.

Social Structure

During migration and breeding season, Harp seals congregate groups small and large and are very social, though There is no evidence of any social system or hierarchy among them.

Reproduction

Harp seals start their migration to their breeding grounds in the winter. They gather in huge groups on pack ice in the ocean to breed. They remain in the groups during the molting stage, but the male seals will leave to migrate back north once the pup is born. Harp seals will only have one mate per mating season, and typically only one pup is born though multiple is possible.

The mother stays and nurses the pup for only 10-12 days before leaving to go back north as well. The mother identifies her pup by smell. during this time, the pup gains fat every day and must learn to swim and live on its own after such a short period.

Development

There are 5 main stages of development for a pup.

White coat - up to 12 days after birth, the pup's coat is white to help it blend in with the ice as it nurses. may also be stained yellow for up to 3 days after birth from placental fluid.

During this stage, the pup will spend most of its time feeding and gaining fat

Ragged jacket - lasts only a few days, they have partial fur and a partial leather coat as their adult coat grows in

During this stage, the seal pup begins to lose its white coat as their silver spotted coat grows in.

Beater - 7-8 weeks, they haven't learned to swim properly yet and they "beat" at the surface of the water

at this stage, their silvery coat is grown in.

Bedlamer - 1-3 yrs old Approaching adulthood and fully independent

around 13-14 months, their beater pelt is replaced by a similar looking bedlamer coat. At this point, the seal is mostly finished growing

Adult - 5-6 yrs fully grown seal

their coat starts to show the distinctive harp shape. it develops much faster for males than females. Females can start breeding at age 5, while males usually wait until they are 6 or 7 to breed.

Causes of Death

Predation

Harp seals are eaten by killer whales and large sharks. pups are preyed on by polar bears and other predators like foxes and wolves

Sexual Competition

Death from sexual competition is very rare among harp seals

Disease

Seals may harbor PDV (Phocine distemper virus)

Competition

Inter-species

Harp seals have to compete with birds, penguins, other seals, and humans for food.

Intra-species

Males will sometimes fight with each-other during mating season by biting, hitting and posturing.

Invasive Species

Harp seals are not significantly affected by invasive species

IUCN Rating

The harp seal is listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN website. with 4,500,000 mature individuals

Population & Trend

The population trend is going up, however the area and quality of their habitat is declining.

Impact of Humans

What Impacts Have Occurred?

Fishermen have been hunting seals for over 400 years. Large-scale Seal hunting became popular in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Seals were hunted nearly to extinction and only managed to recover in the 1980s due to massive conservation efforts and the marine mammals protection act of 1972.

Potential Future Impacts

Additionally, humans are harming harp seal habitats via global warming. As temperatures rise, more and more sea ice melts, pushing them further north. Since they rely on pack ice in the south for reproduction, this can have a huge effect on the seal's population if it melts their breeding grounds.